Céibhionn

Gender: Feminine
Usage: Irish
Meaning: "fair locks"
(KAYV-in)

Fresh-faced and lithe, Céibhionn belonged to a fairy in medieval Irish lore — whose name implies a lovely head of hair.

Pronounced "Cave-in", like Kevin with more of a long-A (i.e., roughly rhyming with Haven or Raven), it's the "simplified" modern spelling of Céibhfhionn, a name made up of two elements: Irish cíab = "hair (of the head)" + fionn = "white, fair", a word used to describe a person with light hair or skin.

Hence, in meaning, charming Gaelic Céibhionn is comparable to Goldilocks. She's also in the company of such old Irish names as Fionnuala ("white shoulder"), Caoilfhionn ("slender and fair", commonly anglicized Keelin), Finnabair (possibly "white and smooth") and Barrfhionn (masculine; "fair hair").

The name is found in one tradition of how the legendary hero Fionn mac Cumhaill (anglicized as Finn McCool) became all-wise, in which Céibhfhionn was one of three sisters who guarded their father's magic Well of Knowledge, so as to deny any wisdom-seeking mortals access to the secrets of the sídhe ("shee"). It was said to be located at the fairy-mound of Carn Feradaig in Cliú (now Cahernorry, near Limerick).

One day, however, they were approached by future hero Fionn and two companions, who were merely after drinking water. In her haste to block them, Céibhfhionn accidentally spilled the open vessel she happened to be holding, and lo, a few drops of well water splashed into Fionn's mouth — enough to give him wisdom.

Many now believe that the well maiden Céibhfhionn represented an ancient Irish goddess of inspiration, and comparisons have been drawn between her and Ceridwen of Welsh mythology: keeper of the cauldron of poetic inspiration (which Gwion Bach, like Fionn, unintentionally drank from).

Just think: The next time you make a coin toss "offering" at a wishing well, you may be mirroring the Celtic Irish in their worship of Céibhfhionn and other well divinities.

A small County Clare-based organization, the Céifin Centre for Values-led Change (pronounced KAY-fin) is named for the mythological figure.

"Céibhfhionn" is also the title of a Pinterest board dedicated to gorgeous locks o' hair.

Sidonia

Burne-Jones, Sidonia von B.

Gender: Feminine
Usage: Late Latin, German, Romanian
Meaning: “woman from Sidon”

This austere beauty has won me over, first piquing my interest with the tragic story of Sidonia “the Sorceress” von Borcke, Pre-Raphaelite antiheroine, and then further hooking my imagination as the birth name of Colette (in its French form Sidonie, that is – see doh NEE).

Sidonia is only marginally less obscure in Germany and eastern Europe than in the English-speaking world, but wherever a Sidonia went, she’d be a rarity. For a class act with a rock-solid pedigree (i.e., gravitas) and the slightest touch of gloom, read on.

Lasairfhíona

'[This name] was one that would stand out all over the world.'

Happily, I came across this ancient Irish name yesterday (13th October 2010) on Name Nerds. Pronounced 'la sar EE na,' it means 'flame of wine' in Gaelic and was borne by a medieval princess of Connacht (western Ireland). It's still in use today in parts of Connacht; Lasairfhíona Ní Chonaola is a sean-nós singer from Inis Oírr, Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland (in the Gaeltacht, that is). In an interview she said, '[My father] gave me this name, meaning "flame wine," because it was one that would stand out all over the world.' Here is her hauntingly beautiful song 'Oileán Na Teiscinne' (2007)...