By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 142 pages
of 142
Breton contraction of Mari and Gwenn
French actress and film director Maïwenn Le Besco uses only her striking given name professionally; it’s a contraction of Mari (the Breton form of Marie) and Gwenn ("white, fair, blessed"). The name…
Irish
"beautiful sheen"
A slimmed down spelling of the more traditional Aoibheann. It's a beautiful name, growing in popularity in Ireland, but the spelling and pronunciation might (will) throw off some non-Irish natives.
Scots Gaelic
"name of a bird species"
Ptarmigan is the common English name for the genus Lagopus, in the grouse family of birds. The name is derived from the Scottish word for the bird, tàrmachan (meaning unknown), with the initial P-…
Cornish
"white rose"
A rare and beautiful member of the "Rose" family of names, Rosenwyn is a modern Cornish compound name meaning "white rose" or "fair rose". There is a popular Cornish folk song titled An Rosen Wyn ,…
Welsh
"gentle, kind"
Used for both genders in its native country, though more often for girls, Tirion is a rare Welsh name with a lovely sound and meaning. Tirion and similar names have appeared many times in fantasy…
Cornish place name
"accompany, bring together"
The name of a beautiful village on the Roseland Peninsula in Cornwall, Veryan actually derives from a series of misunderstandings: Sen Veryan ("Saint Veryan") is a Cornish corruption of Severian,…
"white / fair"
Like the variation Wenna, Wenn is an early Cornish form of Gwen. Confusion with the English word "when" leads us to suggest that the longer form Wenna would be more "name-like".
Persian
"golden"
An old Persian name meaning "golden" or "shining like gold". Today, the short form Zari is often used as a standalone.
Variation of Maelle
English surname
"noble"
An attractive unisex surname name, possibly derived from Adeline. May also be a variant of Eadlin.
Variation of Mirin and Merryn
Merran is a name that feels like a real name but is more a variation on the ancient saint's name Mirin which has morphed through several spelling variations and origin points, traveling from Ireland…
Hindi and Arabic
"valuable, precious"
This theoretically unisex name has an unfortunate homonym in English.
Armenian variation of Ziazan
"rainbow"
Fun and zippy Z name with a cute meaning to boot.
English
"son of Robert"
Not often used for girls, but George Lucas used it as the middle name for his daughter Everest.
Hebrew
"song for me"
Stylish Hebrew name with a sleek and streamlined sound and a beautiful meaning.
"enclosure"
Not commonly used for girls, but Bruce Willis used it as the middle name for his daughter Evelyn.
English, Dutch, Frisian
"marshland; peace"
In English, a fen is a wetland fed by surface and/or groundwater. In Dutch and Frisian, it's a traditional diminutive of names containing the element frid , meaning "peace".
Animal name
More commonly known as the Mongolian Gazelle, the Zeren is an antelope native to the steppes of Central Asia. Zeren might be read as a creative spin on Seren, though both names are unusual in the US.…
Flower name, from French or English
"complexion; coronation"
A popular flower, but as a name we don't expect it to reach the heights of Lily or Violet. Its origins are not entirely clear: it may come directly from the French word carnation "complexion"…
Flower name, from English
"dragon's mouth"
Feisty floral name that would work better as a middle name than as a first, so called because of the flower's resemblance to a dragon's open mouth.
