Intriguing Old Welsh name being revived there, but would have major pronunciation problems here.

Celyn, which starts with the hard K sound and rhymes with Helen, is a Top 100 name in Wales although largely unknown outside that tiny, beautiful country. It is usually a masculine name.

If you're looking for an unusual alternative to all those Rose names, Rhoswen might be a good choice. This name has the soft sounds we've come to love from the Welsh language but is still not as familiar as Bronwen and Rhiannon.

Anwen is one of the simplest and best of the classic Welsh girls' names, more unusual than Bronwen but with the same serene feel.

A modern, unisex Welsh name with a shiny feel, Eirian can mean "silver" (from Welsh arian) or "snow, brilliant, bright" (from eira). It may appeal to those who like rising star Eira, but want something longer, or more gender neutral.

Seems unfamiliar, till you realize everyone will just hear it as Molly. In Wales, Mali is a Top 100 name.

Tailored Tegan is a Welsh name, developed from the element teg meaning "beautiful, pretty". Sweet but tough, is interpreted to mean "darling, or favorite", and is also the Welsh word for toy.

Evan is a boys' favorite that has been given the feminine touch by talented actress Evan Rachel Wood. If you want to move beyond Eva and Evelyn and like unisex names, this may be a good bet for you (though like Evan Rachel Wood, you may want a feminine name in the middle name position to clarify matters). Evanna is also another alternative.

Olwen is a Welsh favorite, the name of a legendary princess in what is believed to have been the earliest Arthurian romance, and in fact one of the first recorded examples of Welsh prose.

Penrose – an ancient place-name and surname derived from several villages in Cornwall, Wales, and the Welsh border country of England – would make for an even more unexpected alternative to quirky nature name Primrose. Intuitive nicknames Penny or Rosie make it feel more wearable.

This unusual and appealing form of Laura is popular in sections of Wales.

Popular in Wales, but likely to be mispronounced as Ryan here.

Less than ten percent of the babies named Rhys are girls, whereas Reese is given five times more often to girls than to boys, thanks to Ms. Witherspoon. It's a sleek and attractive name, but one that benefits from two accepted spellings that help clarify its gender identity.

Linda begat Lynn which gave way to Lynette, which peaked in the late 1960s. Lynette has been off the Top 1000 for a couple decades now, and the Lynn variations finding the most favor are those that put the "lyn" part at the end: Evelyn, Madelyn, Brooklyn.

If you like soft, lispy Welsh names like Gwyneth, or want an alternative to Delilah, Adele, or Edith, consider this out-of-the-ordinary option.

The Gwendoline form may introduce pronunciation confusion -- does that last syllable rhyme with wine or win or when? We vote Gwendolen as not only the most proper but the clearest spelling, followed by Gwendolyn, with Gwendoline a distant third.

A bit of a tongue-twister.

Olwyn is a popular Welsh name that might be an alternative to the more familiar Bronwen or Rhonwen -- though in Wales the female form is usually spelled -wen and the male one -wyn.

This early Welsh saint's name is unusual and lovely, waiting to be discovered. Saint Arianell was a member of the Welsh royal family who was possessed by a spirit which was exorcised by Saint Dyfrig, who became Arianell's spiritual teacher.

Very popular in Wales, this perfectly nice name's only problem is its similarity to the dated Beth Ann. But if you're looking to honor an ancestral Elizabeth with a distinctive rare choice, Bethan might be on your short list.