Names Ending in A for Girls

Adhara is the name of one of the brightest stars in the sky. Also known as Adara, this name is perfectly suitable for a child. 
 
Adhara leaped into the US top 1000 for the first time in 2023, rising 812 spots, making it one of the fastest rising girl names of the year. It currently ranks at number 471, after rapidly climbing again in 2024.
 
Adhara Pérez Sánchez is an engineer from Mexico, best known for having an IQ higher than Einstein and for pursuing her Master's degree at just 11 years old.

Adhara

Esmeralda came into use as an applied use of the Spanish word for emerald, esmeralda. In the 1831 Victor Hugo novel Notre-Dame de Paris, also known as The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, the heroine was born Agnes, but called La Esmeralda in reference to the jewel she wears around her neck. The name Esmeralda got increased visibility via the Disney version of the story.
 
This Portuguese and Spanish version of the jewel-like Emerald has long been popular with Hispanic parents. Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling named their first daughter Esmeralda, inspired by the Victor Hugo novel. Read more about Esmeralda and other <a href="https://nameberry.com/blog/disney-princess-names">Disney Princess Names</a> in our featured blog.

Esmeralda

Traditionally used as a Russian diminutive of Anna, Anya now has a life of its own outside its native country. A Top 400 choice in the US and France, and in the Top 300 in England and Wales, it may appeal as a familiar yet slightly off-beat form of the classic, that sounds both sweet and sophisticated at the same time.
 
Ultimately derived from the Hebrew Hannah, meaning "grace", Anya follows the pattern of other Russian diminutives such as Katya and Alya. This transliteration is familiar in Russia, Poland, and other East European countries, while the Anja is the spelling usually preferred in Germany Norway, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, and The Netherlands. In the Hungarian language, Anya coincides with the word for mother.
 
Pronounced as ANN-yuh in English and AH-nyuh in Russian, it appears in Chekhov's classic,, The Cherry Orchard. Other pop cultural appearances include the Audrey Hepburn movie, Roman Holiday, the TV show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the anime series Spy x Family. 
 
Actress Anya Taylor-Joy and writer Anya Seton may have helped bring more attention to this international gem.

Anya

Vanessa was invented by writer Jonathan Swift for a lover named Esther Vanhomrigh—he combined the first syllable of her last name with the initial syllable of her first. Swift used it in the poem Cadenus and Vanessa in 1713. A century later, Johan Christian Fabricius used Vanessa as the name of a genus of butterfly.
 
Vanessa was one of the ultra-feminine three-syllable hits of the eighties, but has proved to have had more staying power than others like Tiffany, Kimberly, and Melissa, due to its classic beauty.
 Vanessa Redgrave is the doyenne of the renowned Redgrave family; Vanessa Hudgens, the young actor and singer from High School Musical is a more youthful bearer. On TV there have been Vanessas on The Cosby Show, Gossip Girl and Vampire Diaries.

Vanessa

Laura is a hauntingly evocative perennial, never trendy, never dated, feminine without being fussy, with long-standing literary links. All this makes Laura a more solid choice than any of its more decorative counterparts and one of the most classic <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/l">girl names starting with L</a>. 
 Laura has ranked on the <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names">popular names</a> list since official US records have been kept. A frequent Top 20 name from 1963 to 1986, reaching Number 10 in 1969, Laura remained in the Top 100—minus a brief stretch from 1935 to 1944—until as recently as 2001. 
 The meaning of the name, laurel, implies victory via the laurel wreath worn by Olympic athletes and Roman emperors. It was first made famous by the Laura to whom the Italian Renaissance poet Petrarch dedicated many of his love poems and was later used by Dickens in Bleak House.
 Well known Lauras include First Lady Bush, Little House writer Ingalls Wilder, designer Ashley, and actors Dern and Linney.

Laura

Though such cognates of Kira as Keira, Kyra, and Ciara are increasingly popular throughout Europe and in the U.S., this Cyrus relative has a different root. As with all the many variations of this appealing name, there is often confusion around spelling and pronunciation -- does the first syllable rhyme with ear or eye?

One notable thing about Kira is its longevity in the middle of the Top 1000, where it's held steady for nearly half a century. That's a long time to maintain the coveted not-too-popular but not-too-weird status. 

Along with Kira, variations that share the Cyrus origin include Keera, Kiera, Kierra, Kirah, Kiri, Kiria, Kiriah, Kiro, Kirra, Kirrah, Kirri, Kirya, and Kyra.

Kira

Liana is a pretty, graceful and simple name that doesn't fall flat. The name of a flowering tropical vine that grows in forests, it's an international gem that works well in multiple languages.
 
As a nature name, Liana derives from the French liane meaning "liana, clematis", however, it can also be considered a short form of Juliana, Liliana, Eliana, and similar, or, as a spelling variation of the compound name, Leanna. 
 
A Top 100 choice in Switzerland and Slovenia, it also ranks in the Top 500 in the US, the UK, France, and the Netherlands but it would be familiar in Italy, Slovakia, Latvia, Brazil, and Armenia too.

Liana

This Dana-Donna variation has started to carve out its own place on popularity lists; an interesting alternative to Daniella as a namesake for a relative named Daniel. 

Danna

A classic name with regal elegance--Queen Victoria, like other queens, had Regina appended to her name. She was a Top 100 name in the 1960s.
 St. Regina was a third century virgin martyr and her name was originally bestowed on girls in the Middle Ages, but it is used by modern Roman Catholics more because Regina Coeli (Queen of Heaven) is one of the Virgin Mary's titles. 
 
Often found in literature, Regina Engstrand plays a role in Ibsen's Ghosts, Regina Giddens is the central character in Lillian Hellman's play The Little Foxes and Regina Durham appears in Gore Vidal's novel The Judgement of Paris; more recently she was a mean girl in the movie Mean Girls. Regina is the birth name of actress Jenna Fisher, introducing a creative nickname spin.

Regina

Together with Julian, the name Juliana/Julianna derives from Julius, a Roman family name. Its origin is shrouded by history, but possible roots include Latin iuvenis, meaning "youthfu"; Greek ioulos, meaning "downy-bearded"; or Jovis, a form of Jupiter, which means "sky father".
 This spelling, popularized by actress Julianna Margulies, is in the US Top 400 and in the Top 200 in Poland. One of the Dixie Chicks--Emily Robison--used it for her daughter.

Julianna

Romantic, and classy, this variation heats up Caroline and modernizes Carol, adding a southern accent. A popular choice in Portugal, Spain, Mexico, and Italy, it recently entered the US Top 500.
 Pronounced Caro-LINE-a in English-speaking countries, it is heard as Caro-LEEN-a in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese. Nicknames can include Caro and Lina, as well as Carrie.
 A prominent bearer is Venezuelan fashion designer Carolina Herrera (born Maria Carolina), who has designed clothes for First Ladies from Jacqueline Kennedy to Michele Obama. A hauntingly melodic theme song in James Taylor's 'Carolina on My Mind.'
 With the exception of two years during the 50s, Carolina has ranked in the US Top 1000 since the stats began in the 1880s, never overly popular, but never out of style either.

Carolina

Popularized in the 1940s by Lana (born Judy) Turner, today Lana is synonymous with American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. Although it has been rising steadily since the early 2000s, Lana still sits in the popularity "sweet spot" – familiar, but not overused. Simple, sleek and seamlessly international, it makes a great choice.

Lana

Angela was a Top 10 name from 1965 to 1979, the fifth most <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names">popular name</a> for three years, and staying in the double digits until the turn of the 21st century. Today, though, Angelina or Angelica would be more fashionable options.
 Angela has a number of notable namesakes, including activist Angela Davis, German Chancellor Merkel, and actresses Lansbury, Bassett and Kinsey.

Angela

Mackenzie begat McKenna - a catchy but very trendy choice. While the Mc or Mac prefix means "son of," this is much more popular as a girl name in the US, peaking at #177 in 2002. 

Mckenna

Beguiling and lovely, Laila is one of the lilting variations of Leila and Layla. It's the name of the former-boxer daughter of Muhammad Ali and of actor Shawn Wayans. In Finland, the Sami people use this in place of the Scandinavian name Helga.

Laila

Melissa derives from the Greek word mélissa, meaning "bee," which was taken from the word for honey, meli. In Greek mythology, Melissa was a nymph who nursed the infant god Zeus with honey. Melissa was used as a given name by the early Greeks, as well as for fairies by Italian Renaissance poets.
 
Most parents today think of Melissa as one of the fashionable names during their childhoods, and indeed for years it was one of the most popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/m">girl names starting with M</a>. But there are still plenty of little Melissas around and Melissa is also a more classic name than you might think, used in the U.S. since the eighteenth century and originating as the name of a nymph in Greek mythology. 
 Melissa was the name of the good witch in Ariosto's major 1532 narrative poem Orlando Furioso. Later, it can be found in the works of a wide range of writers, including Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling and Lawrence Durrell.

Melissa

Willa has become increasingly fashionable, with its combination of Willa (born Wilella) Cather-like pioneer strength and the graceful beauty of the willow tree. 
Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas are the latest celebrities to welcome a daughter named Willa. Other stars who used this name include actress Keri Russell, who named her daughter Willa Lou and the late actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who used Willa for the youngest of his three children. David Mamet and Brian De Palma also have daughters named Willa, plus it's the middle name of Meryl Streep's actress daughter Mary (called Mamie.) Young Willa characters have appears on Six Feet Under and True Blood.
 Willa originated as a short form of Wilhelmina. After a half-century hiatus, it reentered the U.S. Top 1000 in 2010 and soared to the Top 500, for the first time since 1949, in 2015. Willa might also work as an honor name for an ancestral William.

Willa

The name Veronica projects a triple-threat image: at once saintly, sensuous, and strong. The name derives from Berenice, the Latin form of the Greek name Berenike "she who brings victory", with the spelling influenced by the Latin phrase vera icon "true image". Veronica was the name of the compassionate woman who wiped Jesus's face when he was on his way to Calvary and whose cloth was miraculously imprinted with his image: she is now the patron saint of photographers.
 Then there was Veronica (born Constance) Lake, the peekaboo blonde of the 1940s, and the sultry, dark-haired rival of Betty in the Archie comics. And, more recently, we've had tough teen private eye, Veronica Mars. Veronica is also the name of an herb with small, bright blue flowers.
 Veronica was in the Top 100 from 1972 to 1991, but it might not be too soon for a comeback—sans the dated nickname Ronnie, although hit CW show Riverdale, loosely based on the aforementioned Archie comics, may provide a boost.

Veronica

A strong, grounded choice that still has plenty of energy and charm, Leona is the feminine form of Leon, itself derived from the Greek word for "lion". Associated with courage, leadership, and royalty — and the star sign of July and August — Leona is popular in Croatia and Sweden, but familiar across the US, the UK, and continental Europe. 
 
Leona was popular in the US back in the early 1900s, reaching the Top 70 in 1904. It remained in the charts right up until 1981 when it disappeared until 2009. This resurgence coincided with a spike in popularity in the name in the UK too, from 2007 to 2009, around the time that singer Leona Lewis won The X Factor and her song Bleeding Love reached Number One in 35 counties. 
 
It may feel like an exaggeration to attribute its return to one person, however, Leona also appeared fairly briefly in the charts in Northern Ireland, The Netherlands, and Switzerland in the same period, while in France, it returned to the country's Top Name listings in 2008, after a 50 year absence.
 
Given to more than 600 girls in the US in a recent year, it is typically pronounced as lee-o-nuh in English, but leh-o-na or lay-o-na may be heard in Czechia, Croatia, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Nicknames Leo, Lena, Lolo, Lee, and Leni make it a versatile choice.

Leona

Spelling variant of Catalina, currently on the rise in the US.

Katalina

Girl names that end in A are a populous and stylish group. A third of all names given to baby girls in the US today end with the letter A.

: Emma, Olivia, Ava, Isabella, Sophia, Mia, and Amelia. Other 

 girl names ending in A in the US Top 100

 include the Latin favorite Camila, the operatic Aria, the exotic Layla, and the down-to-earth Nora.

unique and uncommon girl names that end with the letter A

. Favorites include the august Eleonora, the biblical Susanna, and the multicultural Tula.

, while in The Netherlands it's Anna, in Spain Lucia, and in Sweden Maja.

, Nameberry's complete collection, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry. 

Names for baby girls that end in the letter A, including popular female names ending in A such as Olivia and Sophia along with unique girl A-ending names such as Galya and Wisteria, with meanings, origins, and popularity (Page 8)

10,000+ Girl Names That End in A