Celestial Names: Star and Planet Names

Auriga

Despite being a male character in Greek Mythology, we think Auriga wears better on a girl. It's the name of one of the 88 main constellations.

Celestia

Variation of Celeste, Latin

"heavenly"

Celestia is a heavenly name that sounds more ethereal than Celeste, Celestia might make a distinctive, feminine choice if your taste runs toward names like Angelina and Seraphina. Celestia was more…

Atria

Star name, Latin

"entry hall"

A star in the constellation Triangulum Australe, also the name of a publishing imprint and an assisted living corporation, probably because it has that streamlined corporate I-could-be-a-car-name…

Aquila

Latin

"eagle"

An evocative ancient word that's used as a first name in the New Testament, among other places. It's also the name of an eagle-shaped constellation. That said, contemporary interest in the name…

Columba

Latin

"dove"

Columba is an early saint's name that rhumbas to a modern beat. While the original St. Columba is male, the name sounds more appropriate for a girl in the modern world. Leave variations Colm and…

Comet

Word name, English from Latin

"comet"

Soaring astral name has a great gender-free feel. It also has a pleasing christmas connotation, courtesy of the reindeer listed in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

Cygni

Latin

61 Cygni is a star in the constellation Cygnus. It's pronounced similarly to the Scandinavian name Signe/Signy.

Deneb

Astronomy, Arabic

"tail"

A rare, astronomical choice, Deneb is a blue supergiant star in the "tail" of the Cygnus constellation. Derived from the Arabic dhanab , it is borne by Deneb Karentz, a Biology professor in the US.

Dione

Greek

"divine queen"

In Greek mythology the mother of Aphrodite by Zeus, and also one of Saturn's moons; this is an astral name quite distinct from the better known Dionne.

Cassiopeia

Greek mythology name

"cassia juice"

Cassiopeia, the name of a mythological mother who became a stellar constellation, is challenging but intriguing, and has all those softening Cass nicknames available. And with all names Cass-related…

Carina

Italian

"dear little one"

Carina is a pretty delicately feminine name whose fall from popularity is not helped by its similarity to hurricane name Katrina or slang victim Karen.

Capella

Latin

"little she goat"

Capella, the eleventh brightest star in the sky, carries much mythological and astrological significance. In Roman mythology, Capella represented the goat that suckled Jupiter, whose horn became the…

Andromeda

Greek mythology name

"advising like a man"

One of the stellar unique baby names from mythology, Andromeda was the beautiful daughter of Cassiopeia who, like her mother, literally became a star--the constellation that bears her name.The…

Hadar

Israeli place name or Hebrew

"fruit or glory"

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".

Gemini

Latin

"twins"

Astrological sign with enough rhythm to make a plausible astral name.

Halley

Scottish and English

"hall or woodland clearing"

The Halley version of this popular name family hit the Top 1000 only once, in 1986, inspired by Halley's Comet, named for astronomer Edmund Halley. Today, Halley is still used -- it was given to 50…

Calypso

Greek

"she who hides"

Melodic, rhythmic, and poetic in sound, Calypso is a name with connections to music, mythology, space, and pop culture. A distinctive was to nickname Callie or even Pip, it has that charming -o…