Girl Names Lists · Names from the Arts and Pop Culture
Literary Names for Girls
Across 9 pages
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Feather
Word name
Feather, though it was used for a character in a Walter Mosley novel, seems too light and fluttery for a real-life girl.
Faunia
Latin feminine variation of Faunus
"to befriend"
Faunia is more often rendered as Fauna, who was a Roman goddess of fertility, women and healing. Faunia was the downtrodden yet loving heroine of Philip Roth's Human Stain . Faunia and Fauna have…
Atalanta
Greek mythology name
"equal in weight"
Atalanta was a beautiful mythological maiden who refused to marry any man who couldn't beat her in a footrace -- quite a role model. This myth is found in Ovid's Metamorphoses and later in…
Calixta
Greek
"most beautiful"
Calista Flockhart may have made her variation of this beautiful Greek name familiar to modern Americans, but the even-edgier x version was the name of an earlier feminist heroine: a character in Kate…
Etelka
Hungarian
"little father"
This Hungarian name was created by the author András Dugonics for the central character of his 1788 novel of the same name. It is likely an elaboration on Etele, a Hungarian feminine form of Atilla.…
Bronte
Greek
"thunder"
This lovely surname of the three novel-writing sisters, now used as a baby name, makes a fitting tribute for lovers of Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights . While the original name took an umlaut over…
Domenica
Italian feminine form of Dominic
"belonging to the Lord"
Much fresher and more energetic than Dominique.
Briony
Spelling variation of Bryony, Greek
"to sprout, to swell"
Briony may be the variation and Bryony the original, but many parents will see this as the more authentic-feeling version of this attractive botanical name. Melodic and bright, it was once a Top 400…
Ariadne
Greek
"most holy"
This name of the Cretan goddess of fertility is most popular now as the more melodic Ariana, but Ariadne has possibilities of its own. It first entered the US Top 1000 in 2014. The renewed interest…
Alhambra
Place-name
The Alhambra, which means "red city," is in Granada, Spain. British writer Ali Smith used it for a character in her novel The Accidental .
Dioneta
Arthurian legend, meaning unknown
A minor but intriguing name from Arthurian legend: in the Welsh 14th century work The Birth of Arthur, Dioneta is the name used for the character better known as Morgan le Fay. It's an attractive…
Desdemona
Greek
"ill-starred"
Desdemona is as Shakespearean as a name can be, but because the beautiful and innocent wife of Othello came to such a tragic end, her name has been avoided for centuries. But at this point in time,…
Brett
Celtic
"from Brittany"
One of a number of single-syllable unisex B-names, Brett was first spotted as a female name in Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises , via the dashing and seductive Lady Brett Ashley, who was a captivating…
Fancy
Diminutive of Frances
"free man"
Old fashioned nickname that some girls just might be able to pull off. You'd just have to be sure your little Fancy was one of them.
Blue
Color name
Blue suddenly came into the spotlight, as the unusual color name chosen by Beyonce and Jay-Z for their baby girl Blue Ivy. Blue is also a starbaby middle name du jour, used for both sexes in…
Dabney
English surname
"from Aubigny"
A unisex surname familiarized by male actor Dabney Coleman, but with potential to carry over to the girl's side as well. Dabney feels in line with the Irish Darcy and Darby.
Scheherazade
Persian
"noble lineage"
Scheherazade -- or Sheherazade --is a legendary Persian queen immortalized as the narrator of all one thousand stories in the One Thousand and One Nights . Her story is even more remarkable than the…
Feyre
Literature, English
"fair, beautiful"
Created by Sarah J. Maas for the heroine of her Court of Thorns and Roses series of YA novels. The name was based on the Old English word for "fair" or "beautiful" and has an ethereal charm.
Cressida
Greek
"gold"
Cressida is a golden, mythological, and Shakespearean name, much better known in Britain than it is in the US. Given to just 11 American girls in a recent year — though still the highest number on…
Cosette
French literary nickname
"little thing"
Cosette is best known as the heroine of Les Miserables . In the Victor Hugo novel, Cosette was the nickname given to the girl named Euphrasie by her mother. Although Hugo invented the name, some…