Names That Mean Little

Aban is the Persian word for the month of October, derived from the Avestan apes, meaning "the waters".

Aban

The Narellan is the name of a river in New South Wales. From this name comes this quasi-French girls' name, which is quite common in Australia.

Narelle

Also spelled as Piran, this Cornish saint's name is thought to have derived from the Irish Ciaran. Borne by a 5th-century monk who founded a monastery, it also appears as a place name in Cornwall, as part of Perranporth. This form can be pronounced as PEH-run, while Piran is said as PEER-un or PIH-run.
 
This name shouldn't be confused with the French Perrin (derived from Pierre and Peter) or Perun, a Slavic name meaning "thunder".

Perran

This Indonesian name meaning little goddess is also common in the Netherlands due to the old colonial relationship between the two countries.

Dewi

This Dutch girls' name meaning little flower is one of the more common Dutch-origin names used in the Netherlands today.

Floortje

Fiametta is the pseudonym Italian Renaissance writer Bocaccio gave to his muse in his writing; her real name was most likely Maria d'Aquino. It was also the title of a ballet in the 19th century. This is one of the unusual but not inaccessible <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/505/italian-names-for-girls">Italian names for girls</a>; you can make it even more user-friendly with the cute nicknames Fia or Etta.

Fiametta

Gwenno originated as a diminutive of Gwenllian, Gwynhwyfar or Gwendolen, but it is increasingly being bestowed as a full name, with between 10 and 20 births a year in England &amp; Wales.
Musician Gwenno (full name Gwenno Mererid Saunders) is a famous bearer. 
 
Gwenno is also the medieval Welsh name for the planet Venus — literally "the little white/bright one".

Gwenno

Lillemor is a relatively recent coinage in Scandinavia, where it was most popular in the 1930s and '40s, especially in Sweden. As such, it is considered rather dated in Scandinavia, but it would certainly make a fresh choice for lovers of "Lily" names abroad — although the "Lil" in this case actually comes from lille "little".

Lillemor

Calendula is a species of English marigold, deriving from the plural of Latin calends "the first of the month", because it blooms for most of the year. It would be a romantic and extravagant name for a daughter.

Calendula

A floral name with a sharp, cool meaning, Gladiola derives rom the Latin gladiolus, translating to "little sword", and given in reference to the spiked shape of gladioli flowers. This form appears in the 1991 novel and 1995 film How to Make an American Quilt, borne by a character who goes by "Glady Jo".
 
The name was given in small numbers in the early 20th-century, but fell out of use in the 1940s. The film and book character brought about a tiny resurgence of the name, when it was given to 10 girls in the 90s. 
 
Gladiola could make an interesting update on Gladys, an alternative to Magnolia, and and fun compromise for those who love frilly botanicals names but enjoy strong, powerful ones too.

Gladiola

Cendrine derives from Cendrillon, the French form of Cinderella. It's quite uncommon, even in France, but if the fairy tale made a big impression on you, it could be a sweet tribute.

Cendrine

Originally a nickname, this has become a given name in Sweden, albeit rare. It's much more common as a middle, however.

Lillebror

If Liv can stand on it's own, why not Miv?

Consistently among the top 5 girls' names in Greenland for the past four decades, Pipaluk has one of the most adorable meanings going, and could make for a quirky route to Pip or Pippa. A famous bearer in Greenlandic-Danish author Pipaluk Freuchen.

Pipaluk

Properly written with accents: Réaltín. This increasingly popular Irish name is derived from réalta, meaning "star". Réiltín is a variant spelling.

Realtin

Reiltin

This French-style name is, in fact, an American creation with only a handful of documented uses throughout history. Maudette combines the mini-name Maud — a medieval short form of Matilda, meaning "battle-mighty" — with the diminutive French suffix -ette, so together, this name could be poetically interpreted as "small but mighty".
 
Clunky-yet-elegant Maude has seen a slight increase in attention in recent years in the US, but Maudette might be a step too far, for now.

Maudette

Nicêhis

This sweet-sounding Nordic name has a cute meaning to match.

Húni

This rare literary name appears in Gottfried Keller's 1855 novel Der grüne Heinrich (Green Henry). Fiesty and beautiful Meretlein lived in the woods and was constantly causing trouble. Ultimately, she died an early death.
 
Meretlein was the inspiration behind photographer Méret Oppenheim's name, and she was said to have appreciated her unconventional namesake, and did not take Meretlein's fate as a bad omen.