Arsenii

Arsenii begins in Greek, in the word arsen, meaning male or manly. The old adjective arsenios gave the name its sense of virility and manly strength. That plain meaning, męski and mężny in Polish, has stayed close to the name for centuries.

The name traveled through the church. Saint Arsenius the Great, a Roman of the fourth century, tutored the sons of the emperor Theodosius before leaving the court for the Egyptian desert. His fame carried Arsenios eastward into the Slavic world, and Ukraine took to it with particular warmth. Today Arsenii is a common choice among Ukrainian boys.

In Poland the name wears a Latin coat, Arseniusz. A boy called Arseniusz might hear his full name read out once a year, at his imieniny, then answer to a shorter form the rest of the time.

The meaning holds steady. Manly, virile: that is what the Greek said, and what Arsenii still says.