UK Girl Names

Short, but still kind of a mouthful.

"Help Me, Rhonda. sang the Beach Boys -- help me convince my parents not to give me this sixties name.

Audrina is a name that owes its fame to overnight reality TV sensation Audrina Partridge, one of the original cast of the MTV reality series The Hills.

The most famous Sinclair was the (male) writer Lewis, but these days the name works at least as well for a girl.

A name with some sterling qualities, most associated with the British currency and silver markets. Sterling is more commonly a male name or surname, but is occasionally used for girls as well.

The name recently given to their daughter by Susan and Robert Downey, Jr. is pronounced like Avery and may be seen as a kree8tiv spelling variation of that popular unisex name or a girlish short form of Avraham, the Biblical Hebrew form of Abraham.

Landry is one rising surname name, often after legendary Dallas Cowboys football coach Tom Landry, that is given to boys and girls. But the y ending does give it a feminine sound (as opposed to the more boyish and more popular Landon). Land is a Landry nickname that might work for boys or girls.

This jazzy old name could make a comeback, the way Josephine and Ella have. In England the name was popularized by Queen Victoria's daughter Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, after whom her governor general of Canada husband named the North American province. Jazz singer Alberta Hunter was a noted bearer.

Has an old-time country feeling, perhaps due to Ma Rainey, considered the "Mother of the Blues". This is the most popular spelling of the name, given to about 50 girls last year, with half as many called Rainy and a quarter named Rainie, the spelling used by Andie MacDowell for her now-grown daughter.

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.

Rona ranked in the US Top 1000 in the mid-20th century but holds new meaning in the 2020s. "Rona" has become slang for coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, which gives the name a dark and somber edge. In 2020, Rona was given to 17 baby girls (a fall from 26 the previous year). In 2021, it dropped to just 5 — we expect it to drop off the list entirely in the years to come.

One of the rarest of virtue names, Clemency could come back along with the more familiar Puritan virtue names such as Hope and Faith. It has a rhythmic three-syllable sound, and offers a more virtuous alternative to the more popular Clementine.

One of the rare English surname names originally derived from a female given name: Eoforhild (Everild), meaning "boar battle". Also spelled Averill, it's an extremely rare choice today, but shares sounds with fashionable Ava and Avery.

Literary heritage: the "Loony Tunes" girlfriend of Porky Pig. But with the increasing popularity of all kinds of unusual botanical names, Petunia may be a name we start to hear more of. Perhaps-more-pleasing Petunia alternatives: Petal, Posy, Poppy.

After entering the Top 1000 in 2009, Raelyn has climbed the charts. It's ridden the coattails of Raelynn (which remains more popular), but also may be benefiting from the rise of Brooklyn. The use of -Lyn and -Lynn suffixes has grown in recent years, even as the name Lynn itself languishes.

Biblical name long associated with the fallen-yet-redeemed Mary Magdalen, now rising improbably into the ranks of the fashionable among parents hungry for classic yet distinctive girls' names. The Magdalene and Magdalena versions are perhaps even more stylish. Can be shortened to Maggie or Magda but the full version is prettiest. One of our new favorites!

Has hardly been heard of since Mark Twain was buried there in 1910.

Islay is the name of a Hebridian island famous for its whisky. Don't be fooled by the "y" at the end - this name is pronounced exactly like the more well-known Isla.

Gilda, although related to the words gold and gilded, has definitely tarnished. It once shimmered with the seductive image of Rita Hayworth in the film Gilda, then was associated with the beloved early Saturday Night Live star Gilda Radner. In opera, Gilda lives on as the name of the daughter of Rigoletto.

A winning, gold locket nickname name of the turn of the last century, though also a common nickname for Vincent.