By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 14 pages
of 14
Irish
"one with broad eyes"
Has the energetic-Irish-slightly-boyish image that many modern parents love.
English or Irish
"people of Cana or wolf cub"
While the most famous Channing is the very male Channing Tatum, the name is now given about a third of the time for girls. Television executive Channing Dungey is a well-know example of a female…
Anglicized spelling of Irish Niamh or Italian and Portuguese
"snow"
Introduced to the American public by actress Neve Campbell; it was her Dutch-born mother's maiden name. Neve is an interesting and fresh new possibility, one which Conan O'Brien chose for his…
"son of the handsome one"
Although the Mc or Mac prefix always means "son of", the first names McKenna and MacKenna are used in the US exclusively for girls, with the McKenna spelling outpacing this one 14 to 1. There are no…
"son of Egan"
Another two-syllable surname zooming up the ladder for boys, and poised to be grabbed by the girls.
Variation of Tara or Tyrone, English, Irish
"rocky hill, elevated place; land of Eoghan"
Taryn is an offshoot of Tara that has a variety of meanings in a variety of cultures. In 1953, Taryn was presented to the public as an invention by actors Tyrone Power and Linda Christian for their…
Irish Gaelic
"bright"
Niamh, derived from the Old Irish Niam, is an ancient Irish name that was originally a term for a goddess. In Irish myth, one who bore it was Niamh of the Golden Hair, daughter of the sea god, who…
"loyal"
With both the Dillon and Dylan spellings, usage of this gender-neutral names runs about ten to one boys to girls. But Dylan is used about 20 times as often as Dillon for both genders. Which might be…
Feminine form of Alf or anglicized form of Ailbhe, Danish, Icelandic, Irish
"elf; bright, light, white"
Elva is a multicultural choice, being both an anglicization of the Irish Ailbhe and an feminine form of the name Alf, meaning "elf". Popular in the US at the beginning of the 20th century, it…
Spelling variation of Kaitlyn or Caitlin
Kaitlynn seems to be trying too hard to make its pronunciation plain. At this point, everyone knows that the name however you spell it is pronounced like Kate plus Lynn, so why go all the way to…
"rough, fierce"
While Larkin takes this name from bird to surname, there are actually more female Larkins these days than male, and it's a name that works as well for either gender. It has the literary connection to…
"brightness, splendor"
More commonly seen here as Anya, this traditional yet unique Irish name belonged to the queen of the Munster fairies and is sprinkled throughout Irish folklore as an early Celtic goddess of summer…
"dream, vision"
Aisling is currently a very popular Irish name for girls . Pronounced variously as ASH-ling, ASH-lin or ash-LEEN, it was part of the revival of authentic Irish names in the twentieth century, and is…
"fire"
This phonetic Anglicization of the Irish name Eithne was made familiar by the single-named Irish singer and composer. St. Eithne was the daughter of a king and an early Irish convert to Christianity.
Spelling variation of Caitlin
Kaitlin is a variation of Caitlin that's on a steep decline; it dropped out of the Top 1000 in 2013, after more than three decades on the list.
Hebrew
"locking, closing"
This name of the final service on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is sometimes given symbolically to girls born on that day.
English, diminutive of Nora
Noreen's in limbo, especially now that Nora has made a comeback.
Irish variation of Mary, Hebrew or Egyptian
"drop of the sea; bitter; beloved; love"
Almost as popular in the 1950s among the Irish in Boston as it was with those back in Bray, Maureen was once among the most prominent Irish names for girls in the US but has fallen from favor along…
"of the bright sea, sea-bright"
Once a poetic Celtic name, that of the angel who governs the month of June, Muriel has for a time, become the mom or grandma of TV sitcoms. A Top 200 name from 1912 to 1933, Muriel might just be due…
Variation of Rowan, Irish and Scottish, Frisian, English word name
"little redhead; rowan tree; raven; animal with a coat of two interspersed colors"
Historically more popular for boys and generally less familiar than its sound-alike Rowan, Roan is a name with multiple meanings, origins, and pronunciations. Given to less than 10 girls back in…
