Place Names for Babies
Places names for babies come from all over the globe and can include city names, state names, country names, even mountain and ocean names.
Place names have become so widely used that popular place names make a category of baby names all on their own. Most place names can be used for either baby girls or baby boys, and many can be considered true gender neutral names.
Along with Top 10 Charlotte, which in fairness was a person name before it was a city name, place names ranking among the most popular baby names USA for baby girls include Madison, Savannah, Brooklyn, London, Sienna, Dakota, and Aspen. Hudson is the top place name on the boys' side, with Austin, Kingston, Camden, Zion, Israel, and Phoenix also ranking in the Top 300.
Baby names inspired by places are less widely-used for babies in other countries than they are in the US. Florence and Georgia rank in Britain's Top 100, but those place names have both been used as baby names for centuries. In the Netherlands, Milan ranks among the top boy names. But many other European and English-speaking countries don't rank any place names at all among their top names for babies.
Here, the most popular place names used for both girls and boys. For more exotic choices, see our list of Place Names Off The Map.
- Caspian
Origin:
Place nameMeaning:
"white"Description:
One of the most romantic of appellations, as well as being a geographical name of the large salty sea between Asia and Europe that probably inspired C.S. Lewis to use it for the name of the hero of his children's novel, Prince Caspian, part of the Chronicles of Narnia series.
- Adelaide
Origin:
Variant of Adelheidis, GermanMeaning:
"noble, nobility"Description:
Adelaide is now heading straight uphill on the coattails of such newly popular sisters as Ava, Ada, and Audrey, and in the company of Adeline and Amelia. It was chosen by actress Katherine Heigl for the name of her second daughter.
- Florence
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"flourishing, prosperous"Description:
Florence is back, returning to the US Top 1000 girl names in 2017 after a nearly 40 year absence. Other English-speaking countries have been quicker to welcome Florence back into fashion.
- Sienna
Origin:
Italian color nameMeaning:
"orange red"Description:
The historic Tuscan city is spelled Siena, but the Sienna spelling is the one used recently by Princess Beatrice for her daughter. Sienna, also the spelling used by American-born English actress Miller, is more popular than Siena in the English-speaking world.
- Phoenix
Origin:
Arizona place-name and GreekMeaning:
"dark red"Description:
Phoenix rolls a lot of cool trends into one: it's a place-name and a bird name, it ends in the oh-so-hip letter x, and as the mythic bird that rose from the ashes, it's a symbol of immortality. It's also got celebrity chops, via the acting family that includes Joaquin and the late River, and as the child of an ex-Spice Girl.
- Eden
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"place of pleasure, delight"Description:
Eden is an attractive, serene name with obvious intimations of Paradise, one of several place names drawn from the Bible by the Puritans in the seventeenth century.
- Hudson
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"Hugh's son"Description:
Hudson has risen quickly up the charts after emerging at the bottom of the list in 1995, now solidly in the Top 100.
- Austin
Origin:
English, shortened form of AugustineMeaning:
"great, magnificent"Description:
Austin is one of the most attractive city names for babies, with an attractive southwestern feel, place-name panache and the solid base of having long been an Anglo-Saxon surname and a first name since medieval times. Austin reached the Top 10 in the 1990s, but has been gradually slipping down the list.
- Georgia
Origin:
English, feminine variation of GeorgeMeaning:
"farmer"Description:
Georgia is so rich, lush and luscious, it's almost irresistible. Georgia's now a rising star among the feminizations of George, helped by associations with the southern state (named for British King Geogre II) and painter Georgia O'Keeffe, with the Ray Charles song "Georgia On My Mind" or maybe "Sweet Georgia Brown" playing in the background.
- Aspen
Origin:
Nature and place-nameDescription:
Aspen is part of two groups of stylish and unique baby names: nature names and place-names. The name of a graceful tree in the poplar family with heart-shaped leaves so delicate they quiver in the gentlest breeze, Aspen is also the name of a trendy Colorado ski resort. Aspen started as a unisex name possibility but now is much more frequently worn by girls.
- Madison
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"son of Matthew"Description:
Madison originated as an English surname, a variant of Mathieson, meaning "son of Matthew." It is occasionally translated as "son of Maud," as Maddy was historically a nickname for Maud. It was introduced as a feminine given name in the 1984 movie Splash, in which the main character takes her name from New York’s Madison Avenue street sign.
- Zion
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"highest point"Description:
Zion has taken off in recent years, especially after singer Lauryn Hill used it for her son in 1997 and incorporated the name into a hit song. It combines a user-friendly Ryan-Brian sound with the gravitas of religious significance. The Hebrew pronunciation is 'tzeeyon'.
- Jordan
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"flowing down"Description:
Jordan became one of the top unisex baby names in the heyday of basketball's Michael Jordan, and is still among the most popular unisex names starting with J. The name was originally given to those baptized in holy water brought back by Crusaders from the River Jordan, the only river in Palestine, and the one in which Christ was baptized by John the Baptist.
- Savannah
Origin:
SpanishMeaning:
"flat tropical grassland"Description:
A place name with a deep Southern accent, the once-obscure Savannah shot to fame, with others of its genre, on the heels of the best seller Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which was set in the mossy Georgia city of Savannah. Originally a substitute for the overused Samantha, Savannah is now becoming overused itself, long among the top girls' names starting with S.
- Camden
Origin:
ScottishMeaning:
"winding valley"Description:
Camden is a surprise hit, probably as a result of some star baby cred: it has been chosen by no less than four celebrity parents since 2012. Camden is a Jersey Boy name, along with equally popular Trenton -- these are two cases where the names are more attractive than the places that inspired them.
- Vienna
Origin:
Place-name: the capital of AustriaDescription:
Vienna is one of the more popular of the European place-names, with a particularly pleasant sound, evoking elegant images of the Blue Danube, of castles and cafes, sweets and sausages and Strauss waltzes—and Sigmund Freud. It could be a possible substitute for the popular Sienna.
- Catalina
Origin:
Spanish variation of CatherineMeaning:
"pure"Description:
This name of a touristed island in sight of Los Angeles makes an attractive and newly stylish variation on the classic Catherine or overused Caitlin.
- Zaire
Origin:
Place nameMeaning:
"the river that swallows all rivers"Description:
An African place name—Zaire was a Central African state from 1971 to 1997—it comes from a Kongo term meaning "the river that swallows all rivers." A bold and wearable choice for a son.
- India
Origin:
Place name, from the River IndusDescription:
Euphonious and long stylish in England, India was one of the fastest-rising names on the 2013 list, after jumping 240 spots back into the Top 1000.
- Rio
Origin:
SpanishMeaning:
"river"Description:
Rio is a reductive ranchero place-name with an attractive Tex-Mex lilt. No Doubt's Tom Dumont has a son named Rio Atticus.