Catholic Baby Names (with Meanings and Popularity)

Ralph has two diametrically different images: there's the suave Ralph Fiennes-type Brit (often pronounced Rafe), and then there's the Jackie Gleason blue-collar, bowling blowhard Ralph Kramden bus driver. It's all in the eye of the beholder, though its hip factor did rise when it was chosen for his son by cool U.K. actor Matthew Macfadyen.
 Ralph is a name that's been around for a thousand years, was in the Top 30 from the 1870s to the 1920s, and just could make a comeback. It's already in the UK Top 100.
 Ralph has a number of notable namesakes, from Ralph Waldo Emerson to Ralph Abernathy to Ralph Lauren. In literature, Ralph is a Shakespearean name, appearing in Henry IV, is a pivotal figure in Henry James's The Portrait of a Lady and Ralph was one of the three main boys in Lord of the Flies. And let's not forget Ralphie in A Christmas Story.
 Or you might prefer the French version--Raoul.

Ralph

A euphonious and lovely name with a dark-eyed, long-flowing-haired image, Raphaela is, like Gabriella and Isabella, beginning to be drawn into the American mainstream. 

Raphaela

One of the glamour girl names of the Rita Hayworth 1940s, Rita was once a Top 50 name and stayed on the SSA list until 2002.
 The name Rita still has enough Latin zip to be a lively, revivable short form of Margarita. Other namesakes include Puerto Rican actress/singer Rita Moreno (born Rosa), poet Rita Dove and novelist Rita Mae Brown. Rita Skeeter is a Harry Potter character.

 In Indian religion and philosophy, Rita is the cosmic order mentioned in the Vedas.

Rita

 have loosened up considerably over the last few decades. At one time, babies were required to have a saints' name for a Catholic baptism, but that is no longer a hard and fast rule.

, and that doesn't mean they have to be old-fashioned or boring. There are lovely Catholic saint names that are classics, like Cecilia and Clement. And lots of 

 fit for a Catholic boy or girl, from Phoebe to Mabyn to Dominica.

It may be, well, kosher for a Catholic baby to stretch the definition of a saints' name to include variations of the opposite gender. Saint Raphael might sanction the name Raphaela, for instance, and Philippa become a Catholic name thanks to Saint Philip.

If you are a parent of the Catholic faith who wants to find a genuinely Catholic name for your baby boy or girl, here is a long list of options.

Catholic baby names for girls and boys, with meanings, origins, and popularity, including saints' names and other names sanctioned by the Catholic Church for babies born in the Catholic Christian faith. (Page 25)