Nature, Place and Word Names
Rare Place Names for Babies
Across 7 pages
of 7
Lausanne
Place name, Latin
"slab"
An unusual place, Lausanne is a hilly city on the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland. Its name comes from the Latin Lausanna, ultimately from a Proto Celtic word meaning "slab" though other sources…
Clady
Irish
"muddy banks of a river; rocky place, stony shore"
The name of a river and several places in Northern Ireland, Clady comes from the Irish cladaigh meaning "rocky shore; muddy river banks." Also used as a surname, it feels reminiscent of Brady, Grady,…
Giverny
French
"from Giverny"
Arty and unexpected, Giverny is a French place name, associated with Claude Monet and Impressionist art more generally. Located in the north of France, Monet put Giverny on the map when he moved to…
Elvet
Old English, place name
"swan stream, swan river, swan island"
This Old English name feels as if it could have stepped out of a fantasy novel, but it may be just similar enough to Everett and Elliot that it could work in the real world. Derived from the elements…
Aiaia
Greek, place name
"island belonging to Circe; belonging to the bird"
Also spelled as Aeaea or Ææa, this is the name of a mythological Greek island, home to the goddess and sorceress Circe. It appears in Homer's The Odyssey , with Odysseus staying there for a year on…
Onamia
Ojibwe, place name
"red ochre lake"
The name of a lake and city in Minnesota, US, Onamia has its roots in the Indigenous Ojibwe language. Originally called Onamanii-zaaga'iganiing , the name means "red ochre lake" or "vermillion lake".…
Orleans
English, French, place name
"gold"
An interesting and as yet undiscovered place name, Orleans feels similar to the likes of Harlem, Memphis, and Oslo. The English form of the French Orléans, it ultimately derives from the Latin…
Embrun
French, place name
"sea spray"
An unusual place name with a sea-inspired meaning, Embrun is a commune in the southeast of France, as well as a town in Ontario, Canada. Sometimes known as the "Nice of the Alpes", Embrun could get…
Salish
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…
Tuscany
Italian place name, Latin
"tower"
While Tosca, taken from Toscana, the Italian name for the region, is better established as a name, Tuscany has seen sporadic usage since the 2000s. Sunny and intriguing, Tuscany is associated with…
Ottawa
Place name, Algonquin
"to trade"
The capital city of Canada makes an unusual name for a baby, though it was recently used by nutrition and fitness Instagrammer, Kaleigh Kellner. The Canadian city ultimately gets it name from adawe…
Abilene
English from Hebrew
"grass"
Abilene is a rarely used place name, mentioned as such in the New Testament, that combines the cowboy spunk of the Texas city with the midwestern morality of the Kansas town where Dwight D.…
Enlli
Welsh
"in the currents"
The traditional Welsh name for Bardsey Island, located off the coast of North West Wales, Enlli is an short, sleek choice, given to a small number of girls most years in Wales. With the cool,…
Alabama
Place-name; Choctaw
"vegetation gatherers"
Alabama is a hot southern place-name, picking up from Georgia and Savannah. This is not a geographical name come lately, though--there have been girls named Alabama dating back well over a century.…
Provence
French place-name
"province"
One of the most picturesque and enchanting areas of France could become a distinctive baby name. Provence Maydew is a Canadian actress.