nora's all time favs

Aviva is vivacious and memorable, a fresh spin on the Vivian and Vivienne names that have been getting more popular since Angelina and Brad chose one for their twin daughter. Another A-beginning palindrome name: Aziza.

Among the coolest of the cool color names, particularly popular with celebs as a unisex middle name.

Swap two letters of Birdie and you get Bridie, a traditional diminutive of Bridget. Bridie fits perfectly with the trend for standalone vintage nicknames like Betty and Sadie, but is surprisingly rare.

Cecilia is a lovely classic name deservedly enjoying a new turn in the sun. Always among the Top 500 girls' names in the US, Cecilia is now at its highest point ever.

Charlie derives, of course, from the classic name Charles which, in turn, comes from a German word meaning "free man." Charles became very popular in France during the Middle Ages due to the fame of Charles the Great, also known as Charlemagne. Charley is an alternate spelling.

Charlotte, the name of the young Princess of Cambridge, is the latest classic name to join Sophia, Emma, Olivia, and Isabella at the top of the popularity list. It is now among the most popular girl names in many English-speaking and European countries.

Claudia is a classic name with ancient Roman roots. Never truly in or truly out, Claudia feels like a strong, modern choice that hits the sweet spot between too popular and too unusual..

Clement, the name of fourteen popes and several saints, has a pleasantly, positive, slightly antiquated feel, like the phrase "clement weather."

Clementine is a Nameberry favorite that broke back into the US Top 1000 in 2014 after more than half a century off the list.

Delicate and gentle old-fashioned name, the kind found in early English poetry. While Corinna and the original Green Korinna are technically diminutives of the ancient Kore, now the popular Cora, this name will often be mistaken for other similar-sounding though unrelated names, such as Karenna. But it's pretty and is backed by more tradition than you'd guess.

In Greek mythology, Daphne was the nymph daughter of Peneus, a river god. Peneus saved Daphne from Apollo’s romantic obsessions by transforming her into a laurel tree. It is from this myth that the plant genus daphne, which contains the laurel species, gets its name.

Diana, the tragic British princess, inspired many fashions, but strangely, not one for her name. For us, Diana is a gorgeous and still-underused choice.

In ancient Greece, a student of Plato; in modern America, a cool guy.

Eden is an attractive, serene name with obvious intimations of Paradise, one of several place names drawn from the Bible by the Puritans in the seventeenth century.

Edie is part of the Evie-Ellie et al family of cute and friendly short forms that sometimes stand on its own. Briefly popular in the 1960s, it could well be due for rediscovery. It's already a fashionable choice in the UK, where it has ranked just outside the Top 100 for several years.

Strong, charismatic, and sleek, Elias has followed in the footsteps of Elijah and Eli to become a popular choice among parents today.

Rarely used in the last two centuries, but might be worth dusting off and holding up to the light.

In the past few years Ellery has gone from middle-aged male detective to a plausible girls' name, a la Hillary.

Ellis is a former Old Man Name turned gender-neutral choice for the 21st century. It's one of the less used names in the currently popular El-family.