Names That Mean Sky

Some may think that the girls have enough variations of the ancient Roman emperor's name Julius of their own – from Julia to Juliet to Julianne – without using the usually-male Julian too. But Julian actually has a long history of use as a unisex name, and was considerably more popular for girls than boys in Medieval England. A famous female bearer is Julian of Norwich, an important medieval mystic and theologian whose work Revelations of Divine Love is the first book in English known to have been written by a woman.

Easy and approachable nickname for Yulian, the Russian and Bulgarian variation of Julian.

Joining Lennon and Bowie in the realm of gender-neutral, classic rock-inspired names that feel fashionable today is Jovi — as in Bon Jovi. Jovi is a variation of the Latin Jove — another name for the Roman god of the sky, Jupiter.

This variation on the Julia theme has stayed in play due to the popularity of Julianne Moore, though it now sits at the bottom of the US Top 1000.

Heavenly French word name used for both sexes.

Lynn is a particularly popular suffix for combination names, dating from the days of Marilyn through Katelynn to today's Ashlyn and Brooklyn and, right, Skylynn (or Skylyn or Skylinn or Skylynne). Skylynn is probably more influenced by the trendy Skylar than by word name Sky, but Skylar itself is a variation on the Dutch Schuyler.

A Julian translation that would be easy to wear — Yulian strikes the proper balance between unusual and familiar. Yuli is a common nickname in Russia.

A smart and simple unisex Japanese name meaning "sky". It actually has a second nature meaning in Finnish, albeit a slightly less appealing one: "gravel".

This name is unusual enough that the spelling variation won't be too much of a further complication. While the Biblical cognate Cain may be more classic, this removes the name from any negative associations.

A dashing form of Julian, which derives from Julius, a Roman family name. Its origin is shrouded in history, but possible roots include Latin iuvenis, meaning "youthfu"; Greek ioulos, meaning "downy-bearded"; or Jovis, a form of Jupiter, which means "sky father".

Fine in France, but here it means vegetables sliced into thin strips.

Julissa is a Spanish version of Julia used mostly in Latin America. It peaked in the 1990s and early 2000s and now hovers near the bottom of the Top 1000.

A close relative of the very popular Leilani, with just a hint of Lulu.

Sema may have hit its peak in its native Turkey in the 1980s, but this simple distinctive name is new in the English-speaking world. Arabic variation Sama ranks in the British Top 1000.

Kehlani was the fastest rising name of 2016 and this spelling variation is right in step with other newly-emergent Hawaiian names, such as Kalani.

Yulisa is a spelling variation of the Latin American Julissa or Julisa. Yulisa clarifies the pronunciation of the name for English speakers.

Khalani debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2020 thanks to the influence of Khalani Simon — known as Lani Love — a child model and budding star.

Class representative in the popular anime series My Hero Academia.

In Maori and other Polynesian mythology Rangi or Ranginui was a god of the sky, husband of the earth goddess Papa or Papatuanuku. This strong and simple Māori name would make for a fresh celestial choice.

Although Julien is traditionally the male French form of Julian, musician Julien Baker has taken this variation of the name to the female side of the ledger. Julien is derived from the Ancient Roman Julius which is in turn related to the God name Jupiter or Jove, The most popular forms of the name in modern times have been Julia and Julian, but many variations for both genders, including Juliet, Julianne, and Julius, have become more visible too.