Can the rise of ancient names for babies be credited to the prominence of Amelia, Zoe, Sebastian, and Atticus on international lists of popular names?

Or maybe it’s a reaction against all the new names and trends that have mushroomed over the past few decades, from word names to nature names to place names to invented names.

Or maybe it’s the start of a new millennium that makes us consider the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, or a new interest in mythological names, or TV shows and movies starring hunky gladiators.

All these influences have undoubtedly helped revive ancient Greek names and Roman names for modern girl and boy babies, appearing on birth announcements throughout the Western World.

If you’re looking for a really old name for your new baby, here are some that sound stylish today.

Ancient Names for Girls

• Acacia
• Aelia
• Agatha
• Alba
• Alice
• Ambrosia
• Anastasia
• Antigone
• Antonia
• Apollonia
• Artemis
• Artemisia
• Athena
• Aurelia
• Calista
• Calliope
• Camilla
• Cassandra
• Cecilia
• Charis
• Claudia
• Cleopatra
• Cora
• Corinna
• Cornelia
• Cressida
• Decima
• Eugenia
• Eulalia
• Evanthe
• Faustina
• Flavia
• Flora
• Gaia
• Hebe
• Helene
• Hero
• Hester
• Ianthe
• Isidora
• Junia
• Livia
• Lucia
• Lysandra
• Marcella
• Minerva
• Octavia
• Olympia
• Ophelia
• Quinta
• Regina
• Roxana
• Sappho
• Tatiana
• Thais
• Thalia
• Theodora
• Theodosia
• Tullia
• Valentina
• Vita
• Xanthe
• Xenia

Ancient Names for Boys

• Adonis
• Adrian
• Ajax
• Albus
• Alexios
• Ambrose
• Andreas
• Atlas
• Atticus
• Aristotle
• Augustus
• Aurelian
• Basil
• Caius
• Cassius
• Cato
• Claudius
• Cosmo
• Cyril
• Cyrus
• Damian
• Dorian
• Draco
• Eugene
• Evander
• Fabian
• Felix
• Gaius
• Giles
• Hector
• Homer
• Isidore
• Janus
• Julius
• Jupiter
• Justus
• Leander
• Leon
• Leonidas
• Linus
• Lucian
• Lysander
• Magnus
• Marcellus
• Maximus
• Nicodemus
• Oceanus
• Odysseus
• Orion
• Octavian
• Paris
• Perseus
• Quintus
• Remus
• Romulus
• Rufus
• Sebastian
• Thaddeus
• Theodore
• Tiberius
• Titus
• Zephyr