Esther

Possibly means "star" in Persian. Alternatively it could be a derivative of the name of the Near Eastern goddess ISHTAR. The Book of Esther in the Old Testament tells the story of Queen Esther, the Jewish wife of the king of Persia. The king's advisor Haman persuaded the king to exterminate all the Jews in the realm. Warned of this plot by her cousin Mordecai, Esther revealed her Jewish ancestry and convinced the king to execute Haman instead. Her original Hebrew name was Hadassah.... [more]

ISHTAR   female   Near Eastern Mythology
Meaning unknown. Ishtar was the Babylonian and Assyrian mother goddess who presided over love, war and fertility. She was called Ashtoreth by the Phoenicians, and she was also identified with the Sumerian goddess Inanna.
EQUIVALENTS
BIBLICAL GREEK: Esther
BIBLICAL HEBREW: 'Ester
BIBLICAL LATIN: Esther, Hester
BIBLICAL: Esther
CZECH: Ester
DANISH: Ester, Esther
DUTCH: Esther
ENGLISH: Esther, Hester
FINNISH: Ester, Esteri
FRENCH: Esther
GERMAN: Esther
HUNGARIAN: Eszter
ICELANDIC: Ester
JEWISH: Esther
LITHUANIAN: Estera
NORWEGIAN: Ester, Esther
OLD CHURCH SLAVIC: Esthiru
POLISH: Estera
PORTUGUESE: Ester
RUSSIAN: Esfir, Yesfir
SLOVAK: Estera
SPANISH: Ester, Esther
SWEDISH: Ester, Esther
DIMINUTIVES AND SHORT FORMS
ENGLISH: Essie, Esta, Hettie
FINNISH: Essi
HUNGARIAN: Eszti
JEWISH: Estee
OTHER FORMS
BIBLICAL GREEK: Astarte
BIBLICAL HEBREW: 'Ashtoret
BIBLICAL: Ashtoreth
LITERATURE: Astaroth
NEAR EASTERN MYTHOLOGY: 'Ashtoret, Ashtoreth, Astarte, Ishtar