Names That Mean Goddess

June, a sweetly old-fashioned month name derived from the goddess Juno, was long locked in a time capsule with June Allyson (born Ella) and June Cleaver, but is rising again especially as a middle name.

Cynthia is an attractive name -- in classical mythology an epithet for Artemis or Diana -- that was so overexposed in the middle of the twentieth century, along with its nickname Cindy, that it fell into a period of benign neglect, but now is ripe for reconsideration in its full form.

Sam Branson (son of businessman Sir Richard Branson) and his wife put this pretty place name on the baby name map when they called their daughter Eva-Deia in 2015. Their inspiration was the beautiful bohemian village of Deià in Mallorca, where the Branson family has a luxury residence.

Selene may be the mythological Greek original, but Latin variation Selena is used more often in the US these days. Selene is the Greek goddess of the moon, sister of Helios the sun god. Selene is also sometimes called Cynthia and Phoebe. The name may be related to the word selas, which means light, and is one of the loveliest of the Greek goddess names.

Selena is smooth, shiny, and sensual, a nineteenth-century name that found new life in the Latino community, following the biopic of slain Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla, starring Jennifer Lopez. But you don't have to be Latin to love Selena, which is both distinctive yet in step with stylish modern names such as Seraphina and Celia.

A beautiful name which is well used in India, and certainly has the potential to catch on elsewhere too.

Thora, related to Thor, is the ancient Norse thunder goddess name that's much softer and gentler than its meaning suggests. A noted bearer is actress Thora Birch.

Variant of Ayra

Demetria is a dramatic ancient Greek earth goddess possibility with the star-studded nickname Demi. Young actor/singer/songwriter Demi Lovato was born Demetria, but contrary to common hearsay, Demi Moore was born Demi.

An even more unusual cousin name is the Cornish Demelza, made somewhat familiar via the TV series Poldark.

In Greek mythology, Amalthea is the name of a goat (or, sometimes, a goat-keeping nymph) who nursed the infant Zeus and protected him from his murderous father, Cronus. Thanks to the goat’s protection and nourishment, Zeus grew up to overthrow Cronus.

An Ethiopian place-name and multicultural diminutive for many names, including the Slavic Tatiana and the Spanish Cayetana. Tana is also a rare Frisian name, meaning "thought", as well as a masculine name meaning "sweetheart" in the Turkic Karachay-Balkar language.

This name has a nice mythological, historical, Three Musketeers-ish ring.

Anahita is the name of the water goddess who rules, among other things, fertility and wisdom. Associated with Venue, Anahita is a stylish Iranian name for girls.

The Nixi were a tribe of childbirth goddesses in ancient Rome. The similar Nixie is a girls' name associated with German water nymphs. Whichever variation you choose, this is a unique name with a modern feel and evocative ancient roots.

Fauna is the Roman goddess of the earth as well as one of the fairies who protected Disney's "Sleeping Beauty". It can also be considered a word name with a scientific, nature focused feel. Used to as a way to refer to all the animals in a particular area, habitat, or time period, many might think of the phrase "Flora and Fauna" on seeing the name.

One of the dozens of names used for Lakshmi, Hindu goddess of beauty, wealth and prosperity, Sanvika first popped up on the extended version of the Social Security Administration's name popularity list in 2011, with eight baby girls named it that year, and it's grown modestly since then, along with many other names from the Indian subcontinent.

Chandra is the name of the Hindu moon goddess last groovy when incense and meditation were hot new concepts but a new possibility with the resurgence of astrology and other non-Western spiritual beliefs.

This sprightly Irish mythology name would make an attention-grabbing choice.

In the Old Testament, Asenath was the wife of Joseph and mother of Manesseh and Ephraim.

An interesting and unusual route to Danny, deriving from the name of an Irish goddess known as the "mother of the Irish gods".