Nature, Place and Word Names · Unisex Baby Names
By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 37 pages
of 37
British place-name
"site of the bridge"
This name of a busy British port city -- as well as of several places in America -- has a brisk and bustling air. It will now--and for years to come--be identified as a Sarah Palin name, chosen for…
Hawaiian
"crescent bay or garland valley"
An appealing Hawaiian name which belongs to a town, river and bay on Kauaʻi island in Hawaii. The two possible meanings of the name, "crescent bay" or "garland (lei) valley" both describe the beauty…
Scottish
"Hugh's town"
As far as Texas place names go, Houston is more unique than Austin and Dallas and more attractive than Marfa.
Irish
"from the island"
An appealing Irish placename with a unisex feel, Ennis would be a fresh alternative to Dennis and Ellis. It's little-used for boys and even rarer for girls, but since Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons…
Basque place name
Also spelled Leyre and taken from the name of a monastery fortress, the popular and lilting choice in Spain will pose pronunciation problems elsewhere. Among the Top 100 girls' names in Spain, Leire…
Armenian place name
This was the old name for ancient Armenia, land of canyons.
Country name
"land of the Parsa"
The name Persia derives from Avestan Parsa , the name of the Indo-European nomadic people who migrated into southern Iran in about 1000 BCE. Persis or Persea, the feminine form of Perseus, feel more…
English place name
"ox clearing"
A little-used but equally cool alternative to Huxley and Loxley.
English, feminine variation of Albert
"noble, bright"
This jazzy old name could make a comeback, the way Josephine and Ella have. In England the name was popularized by Queen Victoria's daughter Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, after whom her governor…
Turkish and Arabic
"white"
Beyzs is both a girls' name, most popular around the turn of this century, and a place name of a city and county in Iran.
Unknown origin
A globetrotting placename — Diani Beach is a popular tourist destination on the Indian Ocean in Kenya. It's similar enough to Dion and Diana to feel namelike, although it is actually very rare in the…
Spanish
"trinity"
Trinidad, an island off Venezuela in the southern Caribbean, is Spanish for ‘trinity’ and is a common unisex name in Latin America. Notable namesakes include performers Trini Lopez (male) and Trini…
Italian place name
This name of one of the most romantic cities in the world could easily find its way onto an American baby boy's birth certificate. You could also think of it as a fun, atlas-inspired twist on Denis.
Spanish place name from Quechua
"speaker"
The capital of Peru makes a rare but attractive girl name.
French place-name
Dijon is the capital city of the Burgundy region of eastern France, famed for its wine and yes, its mustard. As a first name, it's been brought to wider attention by a few prominent musicians and…
Elgin is a masculine name with Scottish origins, derived from a place name in Moray, Scotland. The etymology likely stems from Gaelic, possibly meaning 'noble' or 'high-spirited.' Historically, Elgin…
Finnish place name; Japanese
"loaded with rice"
A unisex cultural crossover that has seen a little use from the 1990s onwards. In Japanese mythology, Inari is an androgynous deity associated with rice, tea and foxes. In Finland, it is the name of…
Biblical place name or variation of Judah, Hebrew
"praised"
Judea — also spelled Judaea — is a mountainous region in the Middle East historically part of Jerusalem, that is significant in religions like Judaism and Christianity. As Jude and Judah dominate in…
Hebrew
"house of bread"
The Spanish name Belén is a well-established girl name, but parents have been slower to use the English equivalent. It is beginning to come into wider use, along with other New Testament place names…
English
"from the walled city"
Carlisle may be a male name in Twilight (he's vampire hero Edward's adoptive father), but in the real baby naming world, it's used about a quarter of the time for girls. Unusual now, we think…
