Names That Mean Young

Juniper is a fresh-feeling nature name -- it's a small evergreen shrub -- with lots of energy. A new favorite of fashionable parents, Juniper joins such other tree and shrub names as Hazel, Acacia, and Willow.

Owen, a resonant Celtic name, has ranked among the Top 100 boys' names in the US for 20 years and is now at its highest point ever.

Chloe is a pretty springtime name symbolizing new growth. Though slightly off its peak in the Top 10 in 2010, Chloe still ranks in the Top 20 and is solidly a modern classic.

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.

At one time just the sound of the name Camille could start people coughing, recalling the tragic Lady of the Camellias, the heroine played by Greta Garbo in the vintage film based on a Dumas story, but that image has faded, replaced by a sleek, chic, highly attractive one.

The Spanish Camila, pronounced ka-MEE-la, is the fastest rising version of this ancient Roman name, but recent royal Camilla may have helped promote the British brand. In Roman myth, Camilla was a swift-footed huntress so fast she could run over a field without bending a blade of grass.

The Spanish Camila, pronounced ka-MEE-la, is the fastest rising version of this ancient Roman name, but recent royal Camilla may have helped promote the British brand.

Lowell is an upstanding and somewhat conservative name that calls to mind the genteel patrician families of nineteenth century New England, such as the one poet Robert Lowell was born into. Two other Lowell-surnamed poets are Amy and James Russell.

Colt is the kind of unconventionally macho name that is so trendy right now, because of or in spite of its association with horses and guns.

Juniper is a nature name that we really like. While it's trendiest for girls -- about 2500 baby girls were named Juniper in 2022 versus 34 baby boys -- the most notable Juniper in history was the saint Brother Juniper, a follower of Saint Francis renowned for his generosity. Blessed Junipero Serra, who founded the first of the California Missions, took his name from the earlier Saint Juniper.

Lionel is one leonine name that hasn't taken off as cousins Leo and Leonardo have, though it did reenter the Top 1000 in 2010 after several years away; it was at its highest point in the 1920s and 1930s.

This ancient Roman family name, first borne by the distinguished Marcus Claudius Marcellus and later by two popes, is a possibilty in the hot new category of names from antiquity.

The doe-eyed Fawn is as gentle and soft as the baby deer it represents. And much like that baby deer, it carries with it the potential of new life. Fawn was featured at the bottom of the Top 1000 throughout the '60s and '70s — around the same time that Bambi came into play. But unlike Bambi, Fawn maintains relevance in the 21st century, thanks to its warmth and ties to the natural world. We would love to meet more baby girls named Fawn.

Based on the ancient name Marcellus, drawn from Mars the god of war, Marcello -- it's pronounced mar-chell-o -- is one of the most lush and attractive Latin names.

One of those names that most Americans find just too too tea-sippingly British to consider; its meaning has led to occasional use for Capricorn boys.

Fauna is the Roman goddess of the earth as well as one of the fairies who protected Disney's "Sleeping Beauty".

Milla originated as a diminutive of names like Camilla and Ludmilla, but has since become well established as a name in its own right in several European countries. Milla Jovovich is a Ukrainian-born actress and supermodel.

A traditional name still used in Orthodox families. Rivka is the original form of Rebekah or Rebecca, today used far more widely than the original. Rifka is a variation.

Taya has recently jumped into the mainstream name pool, perhaps because of kinship with Maya and Kaya. After five years outside the US Top 1000, it reentered in 2015.

Often found as a brand name in the hi-tech and industrial worlds.