Birthday Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 6 pages
of 6
Hebrew
"hope"
Appreciated by religious Jews for its connection to "Hatikva," the Israeli national anthem.
English
"new land"
Some will see this as spirited, others stuffy. The protagonist of the Edith Wharton novel The Age of Innocence was a popular and successful lawyer named Newbold Archer.
Welsh
"new pond"
Male name that seems feminine enough to switch genders, if you're looking for a new lyn spin.
"newcomer"
Family name best used in the middle, especially since it was seen as the portly postman in Seinfeld.
English place-name
"new port"
For sailors or jazz lovers. Or smokers of menthol cigarettes.
Arabic
"breeze, fresh air"
Associated with a spring festival, this name is used by both Muslims and Christians.
French
"new"
Shot to fame as the middle name of Brangelina's daughter Shiloh Nouvel, after French architect Jean Nouvel.
Hindi astrology name
"Capricorn"
Charismatic choice among January baby names .
English from Latin
A literary twist on rising star Nova, derived from the same Latin word.
Japanese
"bright light; hopeful fortune"
A Japanese name with lovely meanings.
Literary name
Karou is the blue-haired, tattooed protagonist of Laini Taylor’s Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy; her name means "hope" in the language of the chimaera who raised her. Reminiscent of sweet…
"fresh, luxuriant"
This strong name and its variations are well used in Israel.
"beautiful, fresh"
Lovely Hebrew name with distinctive double a's, but beware of possible "banana" teasing.
Arabic and Sanskrit
"hope; ruler"
Raja is a widely-used Arabic or Sanskrit name that works for girls as well as boys. Five baby girls were named Raja and seven given the Rajah spelling in the US last year, where for boys the…
Janvière is a feminine name of French origin, derived from the Latin name "Januarius," which means "January" or "belonging to Janus." Janus was the Roman god of doorways, transitions, and new…
Portuguese
"January"
Way before January Jones made this month a fashionable girls' name, there was Princess Januaria of Brazil, daughter of the King of Portugal and the Archduchess of Austria. One of the most pointed yet…
Georgian
Less clunky than Imelda, and with a wonderful meaning.
English, Norse
"love again, renewal"
Idony is a Medieval variation of Idonea, itself an English form of Iðunn, the Norse goddess of spring and eternal youth. She was notable for carrying, keeping, and guarding the box of apples from…
"dawn"
Subtle choice for a baby born in the early morning.
Yiddish
The exact origins of Shprintza, and its original form, Shrprintze, are unknown, though it is speculated to be the Yiddish variation of the Spanish name Esperanza. In Fiddler on the Roof , Tevye has a…
