International Baby Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 20 pages
of 20
Nahuatl, Aztec
"land, earth"
Tlalli is an Aztec name meaning "earth", and was also the name of a proposed sculpture of a large indigenous woman's head by contemporary artist Pedro Reyes.
Cherokee
"black fox"
One of three Cherokee names with the same meaning, along with Inali and Enoli, both male names.
Diminutive of Melissa or Cherokee variation of Mary, Greek, Hebrew or Egyptian
"honeybee; drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"
Native American
"happy fortune"
Resonant and unusual.
Estonian
"beginning; defender of men"
Originating from the historical Baltic region of Livonia, Alo is used in modern-day Estonia as a diminutive of Aleksander and as a word-inspired name, deriving from alustus , meaning "beginning".…
Nahuatl
"blood"
A unisex Nahuatl name with a strong and stylish sound, but a meaning that some might find off-putting.
Native American place name
Chenoa is the Native American name for the Kentucky River. This name has come into prominence as the stage name of Argentine singer María Laura Corradini Falomir. In the US it is given to a handful…
Kiowa, Native American
"principal people"
The Kiowa People are an Indigenous American tribe of the Great Plains. The exact derivation of their name has been lost, but most scholars agree it means "principal people." The Kiowa People have…
Japanese, Native American
"stork; night"
A funkier version of Coco that may be more appealing if you have Japanese or Native American heritage. Koko comes from the Blackfoot tribe, native to what is now Montana and Alberta, Canada.
"moon"
This was the name of the Aztec god (or goddess) of the moon.
Swedish, Finnish, Inuktitut
"lily"
If you're ready to move beyond Anna and Hannah, consider this traditional Scandinavian short form of Susanna, historically very popular in its native lands. Sanna is also a modern Inuktitut form of…
"great land"
Alaska is a state name that's gaining a following, along with Montana and Dakota. While it was used exclusively for girls in the 2020 US name statistics, there's no reason it can't work just as well…
Place-name
"muddy waters"
This Central American place-name would make a unique alternative to Bella or Belle. The name Belize comes from the Mayan word Balix, meaning "muddy waters" — a reference to the Belize River.
Variation of Yara, Arabic, Tupi
"small butterfly; lady of the water"
Iara rhymes with Yara, an Arabic name of which it can be a variation. More commonly it's associated with Iara of Brazilian myth — a water nymph, sometimes mermaid, of Tupi and Guaraní legend. In the…
"dugout canoe"
Missouri, the name of a tribe, a state and a river, derives from the Illinois word mihsoori meaning "dugout canoe". It became a somewhat popular American girls' name in the mid-19th century. Missouri…
Hindi, Hebrew, and Choctaw
"friendly, to plant, and bear"
One of those slender names, like Lena or Etta, that's used in several cultures and carries a range of meanings. But by being so many things, it doesn't feel decidedly like anything.
Place name, English form of Séliš, Salishan
"Salish people"
The Salishan are ingenious people from the Pacific North West, made up of four major groups who speak one of 23 Salishan languages. The name "Salish" is an anglicization of Séliš, the local name of…
American state name
"people of the west wind"
A rare geographical option which was given to six boys and fourteen girls in a recent year, Kansas is known for its prairies, sunflowers, and barbeque food. Also associated with The Wizard of Oz and…
Native American, Cherokee
"sparrow"
A strong name equally appropriate for girls and boys. For more, see Sequoia, which is the more feminine-feeling spelling.
