Names That Mean Water

In the Bible, daughter of King Saul and wife of King David.

An incredibly poetic name that could be worn well in many cultures.

The name of the (male) otter protagonist of Henry Williamson’s 1927 novel Tarka the Otter.

This British last-name-first-name could make a more masculine alternative to Shelby.

New Zealand writer Ngaio (born Edith Ngaio) Marsh is the best-known bearer of this Maori nature name, properly pronounced ng (like the end of sing) -EYE-oh. It is the name of a tree indigenous to New Zealand, also called the Mousehole Tree.

Feminine spin on Moses and European river name that's also the name of a wine.

Most closely associated with famed English novelist George Orwell (whose real name was Eric Arthur Blair), this English surname is now occasionally sported as a literary first name. Given its meaning, Orwell could also be used by those looking for a more subtle alternative to River.

An offbeat way to get to Gwen.

River is rising as a new favorite name, and names of rivers are also increasingly used for our child.

This Hawaiian name gracefully celebrates the force of nature, paying tribute to the ocean. If you're looking for unique names that mean ocean, this should be on your short list.

This Indian name with a Slavic sound definitely has potential.

Derya is a unisex name in its native Turkey, though even there it is far more popular for women than for men. It is related to the Persian name Daria, which also means sea.

We've seen Haven take off as a nouveau girls' name; Harbor could follow in its wake.

Possibility for a girl born under one of the water signs -- Cancer, Pisces, or Scorpio.

A male character in The Chronicles of Narnia, but could conceivably be used for a girl.

Rilla dropped out of the US Top 1000 in 1915, but it's starting to feel like an intriguing possibility again in this age of short, sweet, a-ending names for girls. It is traditionally a short form for names ending in -rilla, like Marilla from the Anne of Green Gables books (Anne's youngest daughter is Bertha Marilla, called Rilla for short). Rilla may also derive from the German word Rille, meaning "brook; stream".

Swam into style and quickly out again, on Chad's fish- er, coat-tails.

In Slavic myth, this name belonged to the water priestess and protector of warriors.

Eaton's similarity to Eton gives it an upscale Old School feel, though in the U.S. a name that sound like eatin' could have teasin' potential. Eaton could also sound like the much-more-familiar Ethan with a tough-guy accent.