Names That Mean English

Earlene is even more out of style than Earl. These are among the names that have not been revived ala the Hundred Year Rule.

Earlene

Briefly in the US Top 1000 in the late 19th century, Fate likely emerged as a short form for the old French name, Lafayette. In the contemporary landscape however, it may well be perceived as a word name among English speakers, akin to Destiny, Chance, Blessing, and Chosen. Around six boys are given the name Fate each year in the US, though 2023 saw it rise a little, with ten babies receiving the name.

Fate

Deverill

Possibly inspired by golden names, Oriol and Aurelius, or by the word oral, meaning "spoken", Oral is not one that would work in a modern English-speaking context. Too medical and too sexual, it did however see some popularity back in the early 20th century, likely owing to Evangelist Oral Roberts. 

Oral

Eostre is the Anglo-Saxon goddess of Spring and dawn. In ancient times, the pagans had festivals and feasts celebrating Eostre, but this practice was eventually overtaken by the Christian Easter holiday. The connection between the traditions is evident today in cultures that speak English and Germanic languages, as the name Easter is derived from Eostre. Most other languages derive the name of the holiday from the Hebrew word Pesach, meaning "Passover."
 
Eostre's origins are in a Proto-Germanic root meaning "dawn," from which we also get the modern English word "east." Ostara is the theorized Germanic name for the goddess.

Eostre

A writerly choice, Quill first entered the US stats for boys back in 2013 and for girls in 2017. It has since been used sporadically and quietly as a girl name, fitting in with choices such as Poet, Story, Sonnet, and Fable. 
 
Along with being a word name, Quill may also be considered a variation of the Irish Quillan ("lion cub") or the Latin Aquila ("eagle").

Quill

Actress Daryl Hannah made this a girls' name in theory, though in the most recent year counted, about 75 baby boys in the US were named Daryl...and zero baby girls.

Daryl

Bardou is a holiday destination in France, known for its pictureque village nestled in mountains. It is also a region of Guinea. As a name, it is more commonly known from its English derivation, meaning axe-wielding wolf.

Bardou

Ellar Coltrane, the star of Richard Linklater's acclaimed 2014 movie "Boyhood," is an outlier, namewise. Most others with his first name are girls, and there aren't even many of them -- the last time the Social Security Administration registered the name at all was in 1956, when six girls were named Ellar. Still, with Gaelic names being trendy, and the "El-" sound on the rise, it has some potential.

Ellar

Fate was in the US Top 1000 for boys in the late 19th century, not as a word name but as a short form of the old French name, Lafayette. In the contemporary landscape however, it may well be perceived as a gender neutral word name among English speakers, akin to Destiny, Blessing, Felicity, and Chosen. 
 
Appearing in the US stats for girls in the late 90s, it is now given to a very small number each year go babies each year. As of 2024, Fate had peaked in 2002 when it was received by 10 girls, though perhaps in the future, parents looking for alternatives to Destiny may be tempted by Fate.

A sweet and rare spice name, which made its first and only appearance on the US baby name charts in 1969 — the year Neil Young's song "Cinnamon Girl" was released.

Cinnamon

Soaring astral name has a great gender-free feel. It also has a pleasing christmas connotation, courtesy of the reindeer listed in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Comet

This Dutch nickname has been in use for hundreds of years in the Netherlands, and is as energetic as they come. Of course, the jokes practically write themselves.

Kick

If you want to give your child the gift of...gab. 

Eloquent

Ancient nickname that sounds cuter than its modern alternatives -- but be aware that in the days of the horse and buggy, it was most often used for the horse. 

Dobbin

Neutral color, but as a name, too much of an oddity. 

Ecru

Ode could be part of the extended Otto/Otis family, or it might be a literary term, referring to an elaborate lyric poem, such as Keats's Ode to a Nightingale..

Even among the range of blue names on the current baby naming palette -- Blue itself, Azure, Cerulean, Teal, Aqua, Cyan, Indigo -- Cobalt remains the most unusual. 

Cobalt

Variant of Marion, a name that maybe surprisingly is used for twice as many girls as boys -- about 120 to 60 -- in the US. Surprisingly, Marion hung on longer to the boys' Top 1000, until the late 1990s, than to the girls', which is left in the late 1960s.

Still, we see this as a classic that could be ripe for revival.

Maryon

The name Aldus gained some recognition through Aldus Manutius, a renowned 15th-century Italian printer and publisher who founded the Aldine Press. The name might be more familiar in its Aldous form, via Aldous Huxley, author of Brave New World. While never extremely common, the name has an intellectual, scholarly quality to it.