Desta

"He has bloomed", related to abeba ("flower"). Borne by the marathon runner Abebe Bikila, the first Black African Olympic gold medallist.

From "alem" (the world) and "ayehu" (I have seen): in use, understood to mean "I have enjoyed life".

From alem ("world") + -u ("his"): "his world" — the child is the parents' whole world.

Amharic for "diamond".

"He has flourished" or "grown, germinated".

From berhan ("light") + -u ("his"): "his light".

Amharic for "orange" (the fruit). Borne by the opposition leader and judge Birtukan Mideksa.

Amharic for "paradise, garden", from Ge'ez ganat.

"(He is) their master, their lord" — the honorific plural, used as a mark of respect toward the child.

Amharic for "majesty, dignity, honour".

From Ge'ez hayl, "power, might, strength". Used chiefly in compounds — Haile Selassie ("power of the Trinity"), Haile Mariam ("power of Mary").

Amharic for "life".

"He has grown weighty" — from a verb for becoming heavy, understood figuratively: the child has come to be honoured and respected.

From qonjo ("beautiful"): "the beautiful one".

Amharic for "nobleman" or "aristocrat".

Amharic for "foundation" or "cornerstone", given with the hope the child will be a stable, reliable support to their family. Borne by Olympic gold medalist Meseret Defar.

Amharic for "freedom", a name resonant with Ethiopia's history of resisting colonization.

Amharic for "peace" (Ge'ez selam, cognate with Hebrew shalom and Arabic salaam).

"He has been renewed" or "reborn" — carrying a Christian sense of spiritual renewal.

From tesfa ("hope") + -ye ("my"): "my hope". So widely used one generation up that it was recorded as the single most common surname in Ethiopia in 2019.

Amharic for "patience".

Amharic for "the crown", from Ge'ez. Borne by Empress Zewditu, who ruled Ethiopia from 1916 to 1930 — the first woman to be head of an internationally recognised state in modern Africa.

Tamazight for "moon".

Bambara for "the crowd" or "the community".

Bemba for "the one who is lost".

Bemba for "sun".

Chichewa for "mercy".

Chichewa for "love".

Fulfulde for "patient" or "meticulous".

From ugo ("eagle," and by extension honour, distinction, a crown) + Chukwu ("God"): literally "God's eagle," understood as "the crown / glory of God." Shortened to Ugo.