Beatnik Bush Babes

With other fruity names like Clementine, Olive and Plum ripe for the picking, sweet Cherry remains remarkably underused: just 27 baby girls received the name in 2017, down from 343 at its peak in 1948. The unsavory slang meaning no doubt goes a long way towards explaining its fall from grace.

Most familiar in the English speaking world as the Star Wars princess, Jedi, and leader, Leia can be considered a pop culture choice, created by George Lucas who in turn likely based it on the Biblical Leah. It has been in the US Top 1000 since the mid-2000s and is also a popular choice in the UK and Sweden.

Simple but sophisticated, Nisha is a pretty Sanskrit choice that hit the popularity charts in England in the late 1990s. The meaning "night" adds a slightly mystical element to name and it is a hugely popular choice in India, used across multiple languages.

While Woodrow is too forbidding, its nickname Woody is a bit cartoonish, as in Woody Woodpecker and the animated cowboy character in Toy Story. Woody also has a slang meaning that no teenage boy will thank you for. Woody Allen was born Allen.

A title of the Hindu sun god, made cross-culturally famous by sitar player Ravi Shankar.

British-born novelist Plum Sykes has taken this rich, fruity name out of the produce section and put it into the baby name basket. It's more appealing than Apple, more presentable than Peaches. The French equivalent, Prune, is very fashionable there but would not fly with English speakers.

Kali is a number of different things: a playful, contemporary twist on the name Callie; the Hindu goddess of destruction; an alternative spelling for Kaylee; a short form of the Arablic Kalila, the Greek Kalista, or the African American Kaliyah; a masculine name in India; and a trendy form of Kali(fornia).

Lotus is one of the most languorous of the flower names, with intriguing significance in both Buddhism and Hinduism, symbolizing purity, grace and spiritual growth — not to mention a familiar yoga position.

Tulsi is more than a simple nature name: The holy basil plant is sacred in the Hindu religion, used to honor the god Vishnu and representative of his consort, the goddess Tulsi. The Tulsi plant is often planted in Hindu houses and is used for medicinal as well as ritualistic purposes.

Arkady is a rhythmic Russian saint's name from the Greek meaning "from Arcadia." As a literary name, it belongs to a genteel character in Turgenev's Fathers and Sons and a much less benign one in Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment, and is also a key figure in Gorky Park by Martin Cruz Smith.

A classic Italian name still heard in the Italian-American community. Once tainted by the association with the Spanish dictator, it's now more likely to call up actor James Franco.

This Indian name meaning gift or offering feels familiar via sound-alikes Angela or Angelina, and made a brief appearance on the U.S. Top 1000. Anjali is a pretty route to a name that's at once easy to understand and uncommon.

Carver is an occupational name with an artistic bent, associated with wood carving predominantly, though it could also be linked to those who carve from stone, marble, ice, and pumpkins. More familiar that the equally arty Painter, but fresher than the 90s style Carter, Carver has received more interest in recent years.

This name of a Buddhist goddess, a possible alternative to the trendy Maya, was chosen for their daughter by Laura Dern and Ben Harper. Jaya is simple yet unusual, a winning combination, and one of the out-of-the-box goddess names as well as one of the most easily translated Hindi names for girls.

Unless it runs in your family, or Alexander Hamilton is your particular hero, you might consider something less imposing -- and without the teasable nickname Ham.

A particularly beautiful member of the Orane/Oriana clan, Oriane is the first name of a major character in Proust's In Search Of Lost Time, the Duchesse de Guermantes.

William was such a popular name, thanks to the Conquerer, in early England that it gave rise to a range of nicknames, including the distinctly Scottish Wilkie. Heard mostly as a surname these days, it's the middle name of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick's son James and the first name of writer Collins. While Wilkie could make an adorable short form for a little boy, we'd recommend a more substantial full name such as, well, William.

Light and cheerful as its meaning but with plenty of substance, Ilari is the Finnish form of Hilarius and Hillary.

The Zodiac name hasn't caught on like Leo or Aries, though it did appear in the US Top 1000 for five consecutive years back in the '70s.

Indu is truly unusual, but shares sounds with more popular choices like Indie and Indigo. Other moon names to consider: Luna, Serena, Io.