Names That Mean Timekeeper

I loved researching names that mean timekeeper. Since the term can mean so many different things, there are so many exciting directions to explore!

Simply put, a timekeeper is a device or person that measures or keeps the time in some way. As far as devices go, they can range from sundials to digital clocks, horoscopes to ancient devices that tracked the hours using the flow of water.

Astrological Names That Mean Timekeeper

Before clocks, people used the sun and other celestial objects to measure time. So devices like sundials and obelisks are some of the earliest names that mean timekeeper. But there are many other celestial timekeepers- let’s learn about them together!

Obelisk

Did you know that ancient Egyptian obelisks were actually gigantic sundials? These towering pillars cast shadows on the ground, marking the passage of time.

Sundial

Next, obelisks were made smaller, into what we now know as the sundial.

Related post: Names that mean shadow

Gnomon

The part of the sundial that casts the shadow is known as the gnomon. It means “one that knows or examines.”

Analemma

An Analemma is a diagram that shows the position of the sun at the same time each day. It makes a figure 8 shape. They’re also used with sundials.

Azimuth

An Azimuth describes the position of a celestial body from true north.

Zenith

Zenith is my favorite astrological name that means timekeeper. The Zenith is when a celestial object, like the Sun, is directly overhead.

Sidereal

Astronomers use sidereal time when locating celestial objects. Sidereal time is based on the movement of distant stars, compared to solar time, which is based on the movement of the sun.

When used as a name that means timekeeper, sidereal evokes a mystical, mysterious quality.

Related post: Names that mean future

Mechanical Names That Mean Timekeeper

A big thanks to the Illustrated Professional Dictionary of Horology for many of these terms, and their specific use in watch and clock-making! If you’re looking for more unique names that mean timekeeper, their site also lists famous watchmakers and clockmakers.

I love that many of these names referring to timekeeping come from other languages and eras. They have a totally different feel from the mystical, spacey names that mean timekeeper in the previous section.

Cadraturier

In watchmaking, a person known as a Cadraturier crafts the repeating portions of the watch

Chablon

Chablon is the French clockmaking term for a watch movement that isn’t completely assembled. Someone who makes these is called a Chablonneur.

Chevalière

A Chevalière is a type of watch suspended on a short ribbon or fob-chain.

Clepsydra

Ancient timekeeping devices that used the flow of water were called Clepsydra. They’re also known as water clocks, and are considered the first timekeeping devices- they go back as far as 1600BC! In Greek, their name means “to steal water.”

Invar

Metal alloy Invar is used in clocks and other timekeeping devices since it remains the same size through temperature changes. Its name actually comes from the word “invariable.”

Montre

Montre, the French word for a watch, makes a great timekeeper name.

Pitonneuse

A Pitonneuse is a French word referring to a girl who pins balance springs to their studs in watchmaking

Quartz

The mineral Quartz vibrates at a specific frequency when exposed to an electric current. That means it can be used as a pretty accurate way to measure time- it’s now used in quartz clocks.

Sandglass

In situations where a water clock wouldn’t work well, like at sea, people used sandglasses or hourglasses instead. Their Greek name was “clepsammia.”

Termineur

Termineur is the French term for a watchmaker.

Verge

The verge escarpment is the mechanism that makes a clock “tick” and advance at regular intervals. Verge would make a really interesting timekeeper name!

People Who Measure Time

As far as people who measure time, let’s get ticking and name them! These titles make great names that mean timekeeper in a different way from anything we’ve talked about so far.

Referee

A referee, or ref for short, keeps the time during sporting matches, among their other duties.

Arbiter

Also known as an arbitrator, an arbiter settles disputes

Adjudicator

Like a referee or arbiter, an Adjudicator makes judgements or decisions.

Chronographer, Chronologer

Chronographer is a fancy way of saying “a person who measures time.” It’s based on the Latin roots “chrono” (time) “graph” (measure), and “-er” (a person who does something).

Chronologer, similarly, means “person who records or writes time.”

Gods and Goddesses of Timekeeping

Every religion, culture, and theology has their own deities, concepts, and personifications of Time.

These gods and goddesses are strongly associated with fate, destiny, life, death, the seasons, eternity, and more

They are perfect examples of names that mean timekeeper since that is their role in the cultures where they are revered.

Father Time

Father Time personifies time itself and is often depicted with a long white beard, flowing robe, and scythe or staff.

Huh

The ancient Egyptian god Huh, sometimes spelled Huh, Hah, or Hehu personified Eternity. He is also known as “The God of Millions of Years.” Often depicted with a frog’s head, he also had palm stems in his hair, a symbol of long life, with a ring at the base of each stem symbolizing infinity.

Hauhet is his feminine counterpart, and is often depicted with a snake’s head.

Hemsut

Hemsut is the Egyptian goddess of fate and guardian of the soul.

Shai

Egyptian concept of fate, Shai means “that which is ordained.” He determined each person’s lifespan

Ikenga

Horned spirit god Ikenga of the Igbo people in Africa is the lord of time. He is a two-face god. One face looks backwards at the past, and the other looks forward, to the future.

Ori

In the Yorubi religion of Africa, Ori is the concept of one’s destiny or divine self.

Etu

In the Lakota culture, Etu is the personification of time.

Batara Kala

In Javanese and Balinese mythology, Batara Kala is the god of time and destruction.

Mahakala and Kali

Among their other aspects and duties, Mahakala and Kali are the personification of time in Buddhism and Hinduism

Samgong

In Korean shamanism, Samgog is worshiped as a concept roughly translated as destiny. She grants prosperity to the good- hearted, and unfavorable destiny to the evil- minded.

Istustaya and Papaya

The Hittite goddesses of destiny Istustaya and Papaya spin the thread of life.

Mamitu

This Akkadian goddess of fate and destiny decreed the fates of all humans.

Manāt

Manat is a pre-Islamic goddess of fate, time, and fortune.

Bangun Bangun

In Suludnon mythology in the Philippines, Bangun Bangun is the deity of universal time who regulates cosmic movements

Zurvan

Zurvan is the Zoroastrian god of infinite time and space.

Fatia, Ora, Zana

In Albanian mythology, the Fatia are associated with human destiny. They maintain the order of the universe and its laws, and are often depicted as women riding butterflies. Other parts of Albania have similar figures called Ora and Zana.

Related post: Names That Mean Destiny

The Norns Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld

The three Norns, or fates, of Norse mythology, are named Urd– the Norn of the past, Verdandi– the Norn of the present, and Skuld– the Norn of the future. Together, they shape human destiny at the World Tree.

Wyrd

Similarly, Wyrd is an Anglo-Saxon word equivalent to Urd, meaning fate or personal destiny. It means “to come to pass, to become.”

Aion

Greek deity Aion is known as God of the Ages. As representative of the perpetual, unbound cycle of time, he also holds domain over the circle of the year and the zodiac.

Ananke

Greek goddess Ananke is the personification of necessity and inevitability.

Chronos

In ancient philosophy, Chronos was the personification of time. Later, he was often confused with the Titan, Cronus, which led to the illustration of Father Time holding a harvesting scythe.

Heimarmene

Goddess of fate Heimarmene rules over cause and effect and the fate of the universe. Her name actually means “to receive as one’s lot. “

Horae

The Horae are a personification of the seasons and natural portions of time.

“They bring and bestow ripeness, they come and go in accordance with the firm law of the periodicities of nature and of life… Hora means ‘the correct moment’.” Scholar Karl Kerenyi

The seasons

In different ages and regions, some of the Horae of the seasons are:

Thallo, Auxo, and Carpo, goddesses of the order of nature
- Thallo, also known as Thalatte and Flora, was goddess of spring, buds, and blooms
Eunomia, goddess of good order, was known as Justitia to the Romans
Dike, goddess of justice
Eirene, goddess of peace, also known as Pax in the Roman Empire
Auxesia, goddess of summer
Damia, goddess of winter
Pherusa, goddess of farms and estates
Euporie or Euporia, goddess of abundance
Orthosie or Orthosia, goddess of prosperity
Eiar, personification of spring, crowned with flowers and buds, carrying a lamb or kid
Theros, personification of summer, wearing a garland of wheat and carrying a scythe
Phthinoporon, personification of autumn, carrying bunches of grapes
Khemion, personification of winter, bearing dried fruits

The Hours

These Horae were responsible for the daylight hours in different eras and regions

Auge
Anatolia
Musoca
Gymnastica
Nympha
Mesembria
Sponde
Elete
Acte or Cypris
Hesperis
Dysis
Arctus

Kairos

In ancient Greek, Kairos means “the right, critical, or opportune moment. ” He acted as a tool to explain human actions and consequences.

Moirai

The Moirai, or Fates, were the incarnation of destiny. They ensured everyone lived out their destiny as the universe assigned it. Some of their names were:

Clotho, the Spinner, spun the thread of life onto her spindle.
Lachesis, the Allotter, measured each person’s thread of life with her measuring rod
Lachesis, the Unternable, was the cutter of the threads of life. She determined the matter of each person’s death

Aeternitas

In Roman mythology, Aeternitas was the divine personification of eternity. Sometimes she was depicted with a phoenix, the symbol of cyclical time.

Anna Perenna

Ancient Romans made offerings to the timekeeper deity Anna Perenna “that the circle of the year may be completed happily.”

Antevorta

In ancient Roman religion, Antevorta was the goddess of the future. She was also known as Porrima.

Janus

And the two-faced god Janus was the ancient Roman god of beginnings, transitions, gates, time, duality, doorways and endings. Also known as the master of time, his name actually comes from a root word expressing the idea of going.

Vertumnus

Roman god Vertumnus presides over the seasons, change, and plant growth.

Nortia

Nortia, the Etruscan goddess of time, fate, destiny, and chance, was symbolized by the nail.

A nail was driven into the wall of her temple to mark the New Year. This ritual symbolized “nailing down” the fate of the people for the year.

Pop Culture Names That Mean Timekeeper

And what modern timekeepers do we know? Here are a few names that mean timekeeper from pop culture.

Marvel’s Time-Keepers– Zanth, Vorth, and Ast

Long story short, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, three Time-Keepers were created just before the heat death of the universe to protect time. Their names are Zanth, Vorth, and Ast.

Eon

While we’re talking about the MCU, I’ll bring up Eon, a cosmic entity associated with the concept of time. Eon means “an indefinite and very long period of time.” So it definitely fits with our time-related names

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Danny

Timekeeper by Tara Sim tells the tale of Danny, a clock mechanic in a steampunk version of Victorian England.

More Words That Mean Timekeeper

Here are more intriguing words related to the concept of a timekeeper: chronometer, timepiece, sundial, pendulum, gnomon, isochron, hourglass, ticker, stopwatch, metronome, horologue, clepsydra, chroniker

Source: Popsci on the history of timekeeping

Build Your Own Name That Means Timekeeper

Choose from the lists of words below and combine them to make a unique title or name that means timekeeper!

Words associated with time

Temporal
Chrono
Time
Era
Epoch
Eternity
Future
Moment
Occasion
While
Duration
Clock
Age
Date
Day
Millenia
Century
Sundial
Watch
Pocket watch
Clock
Pendulum
Hourglass
Sandglass
Metronome
Timepiece
Tick, Tock, Ticktock
Zodiac
Ouroboros

Words associated with keeping

Keeper
Guardian
Attendant
Champion
Conservator
Curator
Custodian
Defender
Overseer
Paladin
Knight
Preserver
Sentinel
Shepherd
Supervisor
Vigilante
Warden
Manager
Director
Shield
Order

Example Names That Mean Timekeeper

Here are a few ideas to spark your imagination and creativity

The Hourglass Knight
The Order of the Sundial
Temporal Guardian
Watchkeeper
Shepherd of the Future
The Eternally Vigilant
Warden of the Pendulum
Chronoseer
Milenniaer
Custodian of Centuries

Related post: Names That Mean Time

Wrap Up- Names That Mean Timekeeper

Putting together names that mean timekeeper is a fun way to pass the time. I’m not sorry for the pun. I hope these ideas get your imagination ticking!

Awesome Nerdy Name Guide
Look to our favorite Time Lords for more related names- Doctor Who Names