Pet Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 4 pages
of 4
Yiddish variation of Selig
"blessed, happy"
A super quirky and upbeat choice, if it can ever shake off its ubiquitous-guy Woody Allen identity.
Slavic, Hebrew
"vigorous, lively; bright, radiant"
Ziven is a sleek choice with multicultural origins and a bright, energized feel to it. From its Slavic roots, it likely derives from the South Slavic word, živ meaning "alive, living", making it a…
English word name
"holy day"
A fun and confident choice, Holiday is a celebratory name, particularly associated with Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hannukah, and New Year, and with rest, leisure, and vacations more generally. Fitting…
Diminutive of Jocelyn or Joseph, German
"member of the Gauts tribe; Jehovah increases"
Succinct and to the point, Joss may appeal to those who enjoy the likes of Jude, Jesse, Jem, and Ozzy. Brought into the spotlight by Joss Whedon , creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer , Angel and…
"happy, joy"
Many virtue names have long been in style or have seen a resurgence in recent years. Happy, however joyous, seems unlikely to join this trend. This could be because it doesn't have a solid history of…
Latin from Greek
"cheerful, happy"
Ilario's merry, jovial sound reflects a shared root with the word hilarious.
Hebrew
"my delight is in her"
Hephzibah is an Old Testament name that came into use in the 17th century, but is not often used today. It does have less formal nicknames Eppie and Hepsie, which seem revivable. Hephzibah "Eppie"…
Manding, Fula, Wolof, Serer
"happy, lucky"
Western African variation of Sa'id
English
"lighthearted, happy"
She'd better be. Merry is one of the classic names for Christmas babies .
"God is my joy"
Intriguing twist on several familiar names, though many people will mistake this for Elsa, Eliza, and so on.
Latin
"delight"
Tastier than Alicia or Felicia.
"happiness; joy"
An upbeat, unisex Hebrew name with a meaning to match. As a word, it is associated with Jewish celebrations, such as an engagement or a Bar Mitzvah.
"whimsical or fanciful"
Whimsy is a new entry to the ever-expanding word name lexicon, sister for Pixie and Bliss. While it has an undeniable offbeat English aristocratic charm (maybe we're thinking of Dorothy Sayers'…
Old English
"sublime delight"
This Anglo-Saxon gem was borne by a few medieval women including Saint Merewen, Abbess of Romsey Abbey. It has also been used in literature, for example in Kit Berry's Stonewylde series. Merewen has…
Hindi
"the beginning, or, happy"
Rhythmic and enchanting.
"cheerful, jolly"
"of the stars"
This cosmological name is given to a handful of boys and girls each year in the USA. Likely to get confused with Stella or Stellan.
Word name
"harmony"
Hippie name with a sweet meaning. While theoretically gender-neutral, Harmony was given to nearly 1400 baby girls last year....and zero boys.
Sympathetic new twist on a Puritan virtue name.
Greek
"delight in dancing"
The name of the Muse of dancing in Greek mythology. Arguably the least usable of the nine Muses' names, despite serious competition from Melpomene and Polyhymnia. Those two at least have obvious…
