When you first find out you are going to become a parent, picking the right name, or making a list of names that you love for the new addition to the family may well be at the forefront of your mind.
It is exciting but can also be overwhelming trying to find the perfect name when there is such a vast array of names to choose from. Don't worry though, we've put together a list of the top 113 best Bulgarian names to help give you some ideas and hopefully, help in your decision making.
Bulgaria is an Eastern European country bordered by Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia, Greece and Turkey. It has a coast on the Black Sea and is rich in history and culture. Bulgaria has existed since the seventh century, pre-dates the Roman Empire and is the only country in Europe whose name has not changed since its original establishment.
Bulgarian, which is a South Slavic language, is the predominant language of Bulgaria and the alphabet used is a version of Cyrillic which is used in many other world languages including Russian, Serbian and Belarusian.
Bulgarian given names have a range of origins including Greek, Latin, Biblical, Slavic, and Protobulgarian. In Bulgaria, babies are often named after older relatives such as grandparents and will take their father's family name. In order to preserve the family link further, middle names, known as a patronymics, will often be formed from the father's first name with a gender-agreeing suffix (–ov/–ev for male names and –ova/–eva for female names) which literally means 'child of' or 'belonging to'. In addition, the first and middle names will often be switched around between generations. For example, if a man was named Ivan Stefanov Dolmatov and he had a male offspring, their name would be Stefan Ivanov Dolmatov (taking the father's name of Ivan and adding the male suffix of 'ov'). If the newborn was female, then her name might be Stefaniya Ivanova Dolmatov.
Petya (u) – meaning ‘the rock, the stone’.
Natanail (m) - Bulgarian form of Nathanael which means 'God has given'.
Raina – pronounced RAY-nah, this name means ‘Queen’.
Borislav - a combination of the Slavic 'borti' (battle) and 'slava' (glory).
Boryana (f) – meaning ‘heavenly, Godlike and celestial’.
Kamen (m) - meaning 'stone'.
Emilia – meaning ‘to strive, excel or rival’.
Kalina, Meaning: viburnum Origin: Polish ~ View Detail
Gergana – the Bulgarian female form of George.
Dora (f)- after Dora Gabe, the renowned poet.
Dobroslav - a combination of the Slavic words 'good' and 'glory'.
Kubret (m) - after Kubret Pulev, a professional boxer who challenged for the unified world heavyweight title in 2014
Darina – coming from the Slavic word 'dar' meaning ‘gift’.
Nedelya – meaning ‘Sunday’ in Bulgarian.
Vyara (f) – meaning ‘faith’.
Hristina (f) – of Bulgarian origin and meaning ‘follower of Christ’.
Grigor (m) - after tennis player Grigor Dimitrov, currently ranked world number 23.
Chavdar - coming from a Persian word meaning 'leader, dignitary'.
Tsveta (f) – meaning ‘flower’ or 'blossom'.
Rumen - a name for 'a boy whose cheeks are rudy, red'.
Iakobina (f)Bulgarian variation of Jaclyn meaning 'God will add'.
Krasimir - meaning 'beautiful peace'.
Aneta – A derivation of Anna.
Ralitsa (f) – meaning 'larkspur' in Bulgarian, which is a pretty perennial flower.
Katerina - often associated with the Greek word 'katharos', which means ‘pure’.
Momchil - Coming from the Bulgarian word 'momche', which means 'boy'.
Ivaylo (m) - meaning 'wolf'.
Grozdan (m) - from the Bulgarian or Macedonian word 'grozde' meaning 'grapes'.
Elisaveta – Bulgarian form of Elizabeth.
Snejana, Meaning: snowy Origin: Bulgarian ~ View Detail
Darian (m) - meaning a 'gift sent from heaven on Earth'.
Lora, Origin: German variation and spelling variation of Laura
Bogdana (f) – the feminine form of Bogdan which means ‘God given’.
Lyubova – derived from the Slavic word 'lyuby' which means ‘love’.
Evdokiya - meaning 'good glory'.
Nayden - meaning 'found'.
Yane (m) - after Yane Sandanski, a national hero and revolutionary leader.
Timotei (m) - referring to 'a person who honours the God'.
Kaiser, Meaning: Emperor Origin: German
Stoyan - meaning 'he who stands firmly',
Boyka – meaning ‘warrior’ or ‘fighter’.
Matei, Origin: Romanian
Diana (f) – like the Roman goddess of the moon, hunting, forests, and childbirth.
Ognyana - derived from the Bulgarian word 'ognen' and meaning ‘fiery’.
Moisei, Origin: Egyptian
Benesj - meaning 'blessed soul, one who is blessed by the almighty'.
Teodora (f) – of Greek origin and meaning ‘gift of God’.
Branimira – feminine form of Branimir, meaning ‘peace, world’.
Ginka – meaning ‘land-worker, farmer’.
Mitre (m) - the short form of Dimitar and meaning 'earth'.
Kaloyan - derived from the Greek words 'kalos Ioannes' which mean 'handsome John', this was the nickname of a thirteenth-century emperor of Bulgaria.
Teodor (m) - male equivalent to Teodora, meaning 'a gift of God'.
Dimitur (f)- a version of Demeter meaning 'earth'.
Hristo (m)- after Hristo Stoichkov who is considered one of the best players in the world of his generation.
Simona – means ‘one who hears’.
Zora (f) – this short but beautiful name means ‘dawn’.
Dimitar, Origin: Bulgarian variation of Dmitri
Veselin- meaning 'cheerful and happy soul'.
Ana – meaning compassion, grace and prayers.
Nikolina – sourced from the masculine name Nikola meaning ‘victorious people’.
Penka (f) - meaning 'the one from an enclosed meadow'.
Boyana – meaning ‘battle’.
Cezar, Origin: Latin
Vladislav - Coming from the Slavic 'vladeti' (rule) and 'slava' (glory).
Vassil - meaning 'kingly or princely'.
Violeta (f) – a popular name in Eastern Europe which means ‘violet, purple flower’.
Olga (f) – she was a tenth-century Saint whose name means ‘blessed, holy’.
Dimitr, Origin: Greek
Mariya – the Bulgarian, Russian and Ukrainian form of Maria.
Yana – a name of Slavic origin which means ‘he answers’.
Zhelyu - the name of the first non-communist President of Bulgaria.
Natalia – meaning ‘Christmas Day’.
Iassen (m) - meaning 'ash tree'.
Aleksandar -a form of Alexander which means 'defender of mankind'.
Gavrail (m) - the Bulgarian version of Gabriel, this name means 'God is my strength'.
Iavor (m) - meaning 'sycamore'.
Katerina, Origin: Macedonian, Czech, Russian, Bulgarian, and Greek form of Katherine
Zhivka – the female form of Zhivko, this name means ‘life’ or ‘alive’.
Yavor (m) - a name of Bulgarian origin which means 'maple tree'.
Georgi (m) - after Georgi Ivanov, Bulgaria's first astronaut.
Vasilka – the Bulgarian and Macedonian female form of Basil.
Iliana – meaning ‘bright’ and of Greek origin.
Lili (f) - after Lili Ivanova, often referred to as the 'Prima of Bulgarian popular music'.
Desislav - meaning 'finding glory' or 'searching for glory'.
Kalina (f) – a nature inspired name which means ‘rowan tree’.
Konstantin - meaning 'firm' or 'constant'.
Mila – meaning ‘gracious’ or ‘dear’.
Nadya - a diminutive form of Nadyezhda, meaning ‘hope’.
Dragomir - coming from the word 'dragu' meaning 'precious'.
Kiril, Origin: Bulgarian
Blaguna – meaning 'sweet', 'pleasant' or 'good'.
Fania – meaning ‘free’.
Nina (f) - after Nina Dobrev, the Bulgarian-Canadian actress.
Galya – a nickname of Galina, which is of Greek origin and means ‘serenity’.
Lyuben - Coming from the Slavic 'lyuby' which means love'.
Mira - in South Slavic languages, this name means ‘peace’.
Mileva, Meaning: gracious, dear Origin: Slavic
Ivanka (f) – meaning ‘God is gracious’.
Radoslav - meaning 'glorious work' or 'eager glory'.
Asen - from the Asan dynasty of Bulgarian rulers.
Valentina - coming from the Latin word 'valens' which means ‘healthy, strong'.
Bilyana – a South Slavic name meaning 'fair'.
Hristofor (m) - meaning 'carrier of Christ' and a Bulgarian variant of Christopher.
Zahari (m) - which means 'God has remembered'.
Bozhidara (f) – feminine form of Bozhidar meaning ‘the divine gift, God’s gift’.
Prodan (m) - meaning 'sold or pledged to a monastery'.
Rada – of Bulgarian origin and meaning ‘care, joy’.
Dobromira – meaning ‘good peace’ and of Slavic origin.
Lyudmila – meaning ‘love for the people’.
Elena – meaning ‘bright, shining light’.
Ivan - one of the most popular names in Bulgaria and the name of six Russian rulers including Ivan the Terrible, the first Russian Tsar.
Aneliya – the Bulgarian form of Angela, which means 'angel'.
Bozhidar - Bulgarian form of Bozidar, meaning 'divine gift'.
Nevena (f)– meaning ‘marigold flower’.
Ilian - a Bulgarian and Romanian form of Elijah.
