Names That Mean Light, Bright, Dawn or Shining

Light is expressed through several naming ideas: literal illumination, brightness, dawn, sunlight and radiance. These names come from different linguistic traditions, so their meanings should be kept in context.

Lucia — light association through Latin tradition

Lucia belongs to the Latin Lucius/Lucia name family traditionally associated with lux, light.

Clara — bright, clear

Clara comes from Latin clarus, bright, clear or illustrious.

Aurora — dawn

Aurora is the Latin word and Roman mythological name for dawn.

Hikari — light in Japanese

Hikari (光) directly means light with that spelling and is used as a Japanese given name.

Hikaru — shine

Hikaru is an established Japanese given name closely associated with shining; relevant kanji include 光 and 輝.

Akari — illumination

Akari is a Japanese feminine given name connected with light or illumination.

Noor / Nur — light

Nur/Noor is an Arabic word and name meaning light.

Zohar — radiance, splendor

Zohar is a Hebrew name/word associated with radiance or splendor.

Lucy — descendant of Lucia

Lucy developed through the Lucia name family and carries the inherited light association.

Dawn — English dawn word-name

Dawn is a direct English word-name for the first light of day.

Best choices by style

• Clara: bright/clear
• Lucia: classical light association
• Aurora: dawn
• Hikari: direct Japanese light with 光
• Noor: direct Arabic light
• Dawn: direct English dawn word-name