The original Zooey, hero of J.D. Salinger's Franny & Zooey, was male, but nowadays the name is more closely associated with actress/singer Zooey Deschanel. With Zoe at number 31 for girls and Zoey in the Top 50, the related Zooey feels more female than ever. But it's distinctively quirky for either sex.

A halfway house between full-on Anglo-Saxon Eoforhild, and the modern-day version Averil. Everild makes for an interesting blend of medieval with the on-trend "Ever" sound.

Petal is the soft and sweet-smelling name of a character in the novel and film, The Shipping News. With the rise of such flower names as Poppy and Posy, we believe Petal — down-to-earth yet romantic — has its own appealingly distinctive style.

Winter, Summer, and Autumn are all mainstream names; this covers all bases.

While in Armenia, Italy and Nigeria Saro is regarded as a masculine name, in English Saro is a rare feminine name, familiar because of the old English folk song Pretty Saro, which was rediscovered in the 20th century, having been preserved through Appalachian oral tradition. In the song, Saro is a girl whom the singer has had to leave behind in his home country after emigrating, which might give an indication as to how it came to be found in North America. Saro in this case is generally thought to be a diminutive of Sarah.

Fifer is a musical name that fits in seamlessly with the likes of Harper and Piper, but is much more unusual. It's also a Scottish demonym, referring to an inhabitant of the historic Scottish county of Fife.

The Swiss city of Basel was first Basilia, thought to have been dubbed in honor of the Roman castle of the same name. The castle's name would have derived from Basilius, a Roman personal name from which the name Basil also originated.

Rarely used surname, associated with humorous poet Ogden Nash.

Keturah, the Old Testament name of Abraham's second wife, is a possibility for anyone seeking a truly unusual and interesting biblical name; certainly a lot more distinctive than that of Abraham's first wife, Sarah.

A vocabulary word used as a name in many Slavic countries, Iskra means "spark" or "sparkle". It was the name of a revolutionary communist newspaper founded by Lenin in 1900. A famous modern bearer is English model Iskra Lawrence.

Selby, a rarely heard British surname, feels sleeker and more distinctive than Shelby. Todd Selby, known primarily by his last name, is a hip photographer of interiors.

Cosmo's Finnish cousin.

Wilbert is one of the new old grandpa names marching -- shuffling? -- back into style, taking the place of names like Gus and Max which now sound totally baby-friendly. Wilbert and cousin Wilbur could take a little longer.

Margalo could make an intriguing spin on Margaret, with Margo as a nickname. The name appears in E. B. White's Stuart Little — as a bird. Margalo Gilmore (born Margaret) was a well-known British-born Broadway actress.

An attractive North Carolina unisex place name, Raleigh's soft sound is particularly appropriate for a girl.

Short, simple, gentle, undeniably Welsh but easy to spell and pronounce – there's a lot to like about this underused gem. In the States it's been almost exclusively female, perhaps due to the greater familiarity of Gwen, but it definitely feels like a candidate to reclaim for the boys.

The last name of folksinger Joan is melodic in its own right.

This hip Parisian neighborhood name would make a delightful middle for a baby girl.

This evocative term for a stone or shell carved in relief could make a striking first name for a girl, though she would have a starring role in her story, rather than a cameo.

Consistently among the top 5 girls' names in Greenland for the past four decades, Pipaluk has one of the most adorable meanings going, and could make for a quirky route to Pip or Pippa. A famous bearer in Greenlandic-Danish author Pipaluk Freuchen.