Greek Names (with Meanings & Popularity)

Eulala

Greek

"sweet-speaking"

Eulala is a melodious name highlighted for American parents when actress Marcia Gay Harden chose it for her older daughter. The pronunciation is yoo-LAY-la; Eulalia is the related name of the patron…

Malva

Greek

"slender, delicate"

Your zany neighbor, the one who's a potter and has five cats.

Margalo

Greek variation of Margaret

"pearl"

Margalo could make an intriguing spin on Margaret, with Margo as a nickname. The name appears in E. B. White's Stuart Little — as a bird. Margalo Gilmore (born Margaret) was a well-known British-born…

Mago

Diminutive of Margaret, Greek

"pearl"

So many short forms of Margaret, from Peggy all the way through Maggie and Megan, are outdated now that Mago has value simply by being undiscovered. But still, not very appealing.

Meg

Diminutive of Margaret, Greek

"pearl"

Meg, perennially one of the Little Women, is a Margaret short form that manages to be neither quite in nor quite out of style. Meg is sleeker and more sophisticated than Maggie, more contemporary…

Peg

Diminutive of Margaret, Greek

"pearl"

Peg is a nostalgic turn-of-the-last-century nickname, sociable but slight. Like near-identical twin Peggy, Peg is in mothballs.

Hermia

Greek, female form of Hermes

"cairn, pile of stones, boundary marker"

Though we've gotten used to Hermione via Harry Potter , and even Hermes with its godlike and fashion associations, most people would still have a problem with Hermia (too close to hernia?) and…

Ereni

Ereni is a feminine name with Greek origins, likely derived from Eirene (or Irene), which means 'peace' in Greek. The name has connections to Greek mythology, where Eirene was the goddess of peace…

Medea

Greek

"middle"

Mythological princess who killed her kids. Eternal no-no.

Aimilios

Greek

"strength"

Though some sources list this as a Greek variation of Emily, it is in fact used there only as a male name.

Ismene

Greek

"knowledgeable"

Sister of Antigone and daughter of Oedipus in Greek mythology, Ismene's name is unlikely to make it in modern times because of its teasability factor. Ismay or Esme would be better bets.

Melantha

Greek

"dark flower"

The th sound both softens and complicates this Melanie relative.

Mahail

Mahail is an uncommon feminine name with multiple potential origins. It may be a variant spelling of Mihail, the Slavic and Romanian form of Michael, meaning 'who is like God?' Alternatively, it…

Mahaila

Mahaila is a feminine name that appears to be a variant spelling of Michaela or Mikayla, which derive from the Hebrew name Michael, meaning 'who is like God?' This alternative spelling incorporates…

Muse

Greek mythology name

Remember, the Muse is passive: someone else's inspiration.

Narcissa

Greek

"daffodil"

This Greek flower and mythological choice doesn't make it into the pantheon of possibilities because of its association with narcissism. But narcissa is December's flower of the month, so Narcissa…

Narda

Greek botanical name; Latin

"fragrant"

Too close to Nada.

Nemea

Greek place-name

The name of a famous valley in ancient Greece, with ties to the historic Nemean Games.

Neola

Greek

"the young one"

Has an arty, creative image.

Nerida

Greek; Aboriginial

"sea nymph, mermaid; red waterlily"

This is one of the more unusual examples of a group of Greek names connected to the sea, which makes sense for a nation of coastline and islands. The Nereids or water nymphs were the daughters of sea…