The Great Big List of Cottagecore Names

  1. Brigitte
    • Origin:

      French variation of Brighid
    • Meaning:

      "strength or exalted one"
    • Description:

      Brigitte is the French version of the ancient Irish Brighid long associated with 1950s sex symbol Brigitte Bardot. If you want to pronounce Brigitte the French way, it's brih-ZHEET.
  2. Abbott
    • Origin:

      English, Hebrew, Aramaic
    • Meaning:

      "priest; father"
    • Description:

      Abbott is a neglected masculine surname with religious overtones, used to describe the head of a monastery or a prominent church figure, such as a priest. Though the feminine nickname Abby could be seen as a slight drawback, that's hardly stopped Abner or Abraham rising up the charts, and besides, there's nothing wrong with a gentler boy name.
  3. Orville
    • Origin:

      French
    • Meaning:

      "gold town"
    • Description:

      Only if you're an aviation buff or seriously addicted to popcorn.
  4. Hester
    • Origin:

      Medieval variation of Esther, Persian
    • Meaning:

      "star"
    • Description:

      The disgraced heroine of The Scarlet Letter's name, after long neglect, just might have a chance at revival, following in the wake of sister-name Esther. We've characterized her elsewhere as an eccentric aristocrat, much more accepted in the U.K. than she has been here.
  5. Calico
    • Origin:

      English word name
    • Meaning:

      "cotton cloth imported from India; a blotched or spotted animal"
    • Description:

      A word name with fashionable o-ending that has associations with both the homespun fabric and the mottled cat. Alice Cooper named his daughter Calico decades ago.
  6. Lark
    • Origin:

      Bird name
    • Description:

      In one recent year there were 60 baby girls in the US named Lark....and only eight baby boys. But there's no reason this bird name can't also be masculine, especially given that Robin is making a comeback for boys and Sparrow is a notable starbaby boy (he's Nicole Richie and Joel Madden's son).
  7. Posy
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "a bunch of flowers"
    • Description:

      A sweet, nostalgic nosegay kind of name, Posy has been long fashionable in England, a country of gardeners, but this pretty bouquet-of-flowers name is still rarely heard in the US, though it could be seen as a more unusual possible alternative to Rosy or Josie.
  8. Bee
    • Origin:

      Animal name or English diminutive of Beatrice, Latin
    • Meaning:

      "she who brings happiness"
    • Description:

      We've seen Beatrice and Beatrix climb in popularity, along with traditional nickname Bea. And now there's Bee, giving it a buzzy nature world spin, plus a tie to popular late night TV''s Samantha Bee, not to mention Aunt Bee on the old The Andy Griffith Show TV show. Bee can theoretically be short for any girl names starting with B.
  9. Hawthorn
    • Origin:

      Spelling variation of Hawthorne
    • Description:

      The version with the e at the end relates to novelist Nathaniel, so that may be the one most parents attracted to this unusual name would choose. Hawthorn nudges it toward the nature category: Hawthorn is a type of hedge.
  10. Golda
    • Origin:

      English, Yiddish
    • Meaning:

      "gold"
    • Description:

      A name with an obvious meaning, for a long time associated with Golda Meir, the fourth Prime Minister of Israel. Nickname Goldie seems to be catching on in the celebrity community.
  11. Yarrow
    • Origin:

      Botanical name, English
    • Meaning:

      "rough stream"
    • Description:

      Highly unusual as a baby name for either gender, Yarrow is an herb that grows wild and has long been used for its medicinal property. It's named for the mythical Achilles, who was said to carry yarrow into battle.
  12. Bessie
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Elizabeth, Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "pledged to God"
    • Description:

      After a century of association with horses and cows, this name just could be ready for revival by a fearless baby namer -- after all, it did happen to Jessie and Becky.
  13. Terra
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "earth"
    • Description:

      A video-game import (Final Fantasy VI) for a character with green hair and a name that brings the outmoded Terry and Tara into the postmodern age.

  14. Tulip
    • Origin:

      Flower name, from Persian
    • Meaning:

      "turban"
    • Description:

      One of the most unusual flower names, Tulip is cute but tough to pull off as a first. It has some celebrity cred via Charlie Tamara Tulip, twin daughter of Rebecca Romijn and Jerry O'Connell. It derives from Persian dulband "turban", due to the distinctive shape of the flowers.
  15. Wilda
    • Origin:

      Variation of the word wild or German
    • Meaning:

      "to strive"
    • Description:

      Wilda (or Wylda) has two widely divergent images. Pronounced vill-da, it feels like a cousin of Hilda: a sturdy and none-too-attractive prairie settler. But you can also think of her as wild-ah, as in the feminine of wild and wilder.
  16. Gardner
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "keeper of the garden"
    • Description:

      Surely one of the most pleasant and evocative of the occupational options.
  17. Grove
    • Origin:

      Nature name
    • Meaning:

      "grove of trees"
    • Description:

      If you find Grover too fusty and furry, this is a much cooler-sounding alternative.
  18. Hortensia
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "of the garden"
    • Description:

      Hortensia is an ancient Roman name that's also the common name of the flower hydrangea. The French form of the name is Hortense, which is coming back into style in Paris but has never caught on in English-speaking countries. A secondary character in Roald Dahl's Matilda is named Hortensia.
  19. Leaf
    • Origin:

      Nature name
    • Description:

      The nature boy version of the Scandinavian Leif, which actually means "heir". In the creative-naming Phoenix family, Leaf is the former name of the actor we know as Joaquin.
  20. Gardenia
    • Origin:

      Flower name, from English surname
    • Meaning:

      "Garden's flower"
    • Description:

      More uncommon and powerful than garden varieties like Rose and Lily. Named for Scottish botanist Dr Alexander Garden.