Place Names for Babies
- Austria
Origin:
Place name, Latinization of German OsterreichMeaning:
"eastern realm"Description:
Austria is an nteresting, appealing, unexplored geographic destination, much fresher than American cousin Austin.
- Osaka
Origin:
Place-nameDescription:
With so many other places translating to first names, why not this major Japanese city -- especially if it holds some personal significance.
- Scotland
Origin:
Place nameDescription:
Introduced to the baby name lexicon by Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick when they used it as the middle name for their daughter Penelope. As they've proven, it's a nouveau way to honor a Scott.
- Derby
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"park with deer"Description:
It's a hat, it's a race, and it's even been known to be a name. In Britain, it would be pronounced darby.
- Hadar
Origin:
Israeli place name or HebrewMeaning:
"fruit or glory"Description:
Also a city near Tel Aviv, Hadar is a name found primarily in Israel. There is also a citrus fruit associated with the holiday of Sukkat the Torah calls the "hadar fruit".
- Monaco
Origin:
Place nameDescription:
With its trendy -o ending and connotations of luxury, we think the name of one of the smallest and wealthiest countries in the world has rich baby name potential. Jeannie Mai Jenkins and Jeezy used it for their daughter, born in 2022, which may have contributed to the debut of Monaco as a girl's name in the US charts the same year.
- Yuma
Origin:
North American IndianMeaning:
"son of a chief"Description:
The a ending gives it a feminine feel.
- Maine
Origin:
Place-nameDescription:
Strong and spare state name, maybe better in the middle -- or for a boy.
- Nevada
Origin:
Spanish place-nameMeaning:
"covered in snow"Description:
Western place-name that feels equally appropriate for both genders. Note: Natives say rhyme that second syllable with had, so it's not nehv-AH-da.
- Diani
Origin:
Unknown originDescription:
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 US.
- Ravello
Origin:
ItalianMeaning:
"place name"Description:
Ravello is an Italian town on the Amalfi Coast. It's a popular travel destination and was a favorite spot for many notable creatives, including Virginia Woolf, Greta Garbo, and Tennessee Williams.
- Chenoa
Origin:
Native American place nameDescription:
Chenoa is the Native American name for the Kentucky River. This name has come into prominence as the stage name of Argentine singer María Laura Corradini Falomir. In the US it is given to a handful of girls each year.
- Fife
Origin:
Scottish place name, German, FrenchMeaning:
"path; small shrill flute"Description:
Also spelled Fyfe, this zippy sounding name would make a great middle name choice for music lovers or those with Scottish roots. The name has a double meaning: it is both a Scottish place name, likely derived from fiamh meaning "path", and also the name of an instrument, which takes its name from the German Pfeife and the French fifre meaning "pipe".
- Airton
Origin:
English place nameDescription:
Originally the name of a town in northern England, Airton and common variant Ayrton have taken on lives of their own as first names in Portugal and Brazil. This version is closely associated with Brazilian soccer player Airton Ribeiro Santos.
- Egypt
Origin:
Place-nameMeaning:
"the house of the soul of Ptah"Description:
We had Egypt listed as a girls-only place-name until singer Alicia Keys and rap producer husband Swizz Beatz used it for their son...and why not? Egypt certainly works as well for a boy as for a girl, similar in sound as it is to Elijah.
- Concord
Origin:
Word nameMeaning:
"harmony, peaceful coexistence"Description:
With its ties to tranquil Walden Pond, and harmonious meaning, this could be a modern virtue name. It may also make people think of Concorde, the supersonic airliner plane, retired back in 2003.
- Maui
Origin:
Hawaiian, Polynesian mythologyDescription:
The name of the second-biggest (and third-most populous) island in Hawaii was one of the fastest-rising boys' names of 2017. A major factor was surely Dwayne Johnson's character in Moana, the Polynesian demigod named Maui, a mythological trickster who slowed the sun to create the days. (It fell back to normal levels in the following years.)
- Vegas
Origin:
SpanishMeaning:
"meadows"Description:
Viva Las Vegas? What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas? We think not. Maybe Vega, the name of an actual heavenly star?
- Bolton
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"dwelling in an enclosure"Description:
Severe surname choice.
- Zorah
Origin:
Biblical place-nameDescription:
Zorah, the Old Testament home of Samson, is both soft and substantial, and also has musical heritage, having appeared on a character in the Gilbert and Sullivan opera, Ruddigore (1887). Similar in sound to Zara and Norah, it makes a contemporary yet well established feeling choice.
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