Place Names
Across 15 pages
of 15
Eiddyn
Welsh place name
Derived from Caeredin, the Welsh name for the Scottish capital, Edinburgh. The origin of this name element is lost in the mists of time.
Arfon
Welsh place name
Arfon is a centuries-old name the area of north-west Wales closest to Anglesey (in Welsh, Môn), so its name literally means "facing Anglesey". Its main town is Caernarfon, "fortress in Arfon". It is…
Reno
Place name
Reno Sweeney is the heroine of the Cole Porter musical Anything Goes , played on Broadway by Ethel Merman, Patti Lupone, and Sutton Foster. While Reno was not used for any baby girls in 2022, it's…
Chantilly
French place name
"white"
The name of a French city famous for its fine lace. Another association: Chantilly cream – a sweetened whipped cream apparently invented there in the 17th century by a chef at the Château de…
Chicago
American place name, Algonquin
"wild garlic"
When Kim Kardashian and Kanye West named their daughter Chicago — after West's hometown — we expected it to rise for baby girls. But American parents have taken to Chicago as a boy name. It's been…
Holston
Place name, American variation of Holstein, German
"dwellers in the wood"
Holston is a uniquely Southern place name — that of a river, lake, and mountain in Tennessee, as well as a town in Virginia. Holston was first used for the river, previously called the Cherokee…
Ceylon
Place name, English from Portuguese and Sanskrit
"lionlike"
Lovely, international, tea-scented possibility undiscovered by baby names. Ceylon may ultimately be derived from the Sanskrit siṃhala , meaning "island of lions" or "abundance of lions."
French
Surname, place name, word name
Actor French Stewart introduced this one to the lexicon. French is part word name, part place name, and part surname-name, reminiscent of celebrity baby names that reference a nationality rather than…
Calgary
Canadian place name
This Canadian city name would make a unique but very wearable choice for a son or daughter. Cal is a good nickname — skip Gary.
Italy
English variation of Italia, Italian place name
Why has it taken so long for us to discover Italy? The name, that is. For decades, we have been using Italian place names (and those adjacent) like Rome, Roman, Milan, Milana, Capri, Florence, and…
Alaska
Native American place name
"great land"
Alaska is a state name that's gaining a following, along with Montana and Dakota. While it was used exclusively for girls in the 2020 US name statistics, there's no reason it can't work just as well…
Lindos
Greek
"Ancient Greek place name"
Variant of Lindus
Cambric
English from French place name
"fine linen"
Loreto
Italian place name
A Pilgrimage site in Italy that also serves as a unisex given name.
Luxor
Place name, Egyptian
"palaces, castles"
Luxor is just waiting to be discovered as a baby name. It has a lot going for it — an easy and fashionable nickname (hello, Lux!), unisex appeal, and a place name connection. Luxor is the modern-day…
Berian
Welsh place name
"open plain or burial place"
The meaning of the place name Berian, in Pembrokeshire, is not known, but it may mean "plain" or "burial place". It would make an interesting -ian ending option for lovers of names like Julian and…
Daytona
English place name
"Day's town"
Daytona Beach is a city in Florida named after founder Matthias Day in 1870. It is well-known as the home of NASCAR's Daytona International Speedway, the racetrack which hosts the Daytona 500. As a…
Palmyra
Greek, place name
"palm tree; pilgrim"
An ancient city in modern-day Syria, which occasionally makes the roster of girl names. Its etymology is uncertain — locally it is called Tadmor, and Palmyra is the Greek version — but it has…
Atlanta
American place name from Greek
"Atlantic Ocean"
The capital of Georgia is far from the ocean, but got its name from the Western and Atlantic Railroad which ran through the city. Best known as a hub of industry and transport, and for its roles in…
Kenya
Place name, Kikuyu
"mountain of white"
A bold and evocative African place name. The country of Kenya gets its name from Mount Kenya, referred to it as "Kirinyaga" or "Kerenyaga" by the local Kikuyu people, meaning "mountain of whiteness"…