Australian Names: Aussie Favorites

The Sydney spelling most popular for girls: it's in the Top 50 on the female side. Cool for a girl, still nerdy for a guy.

Lucinda, an elaboration of Lucia created by Cervantes for his 1605 novel Don Quixote, is a pleasingly pretty alternative to Lucy. It was subsequently used by Moliere in his play The Doctor in Spite of Himself' (1666). More in tune with the times than Linda, Belinda and Melinda, it could be used to honor someone with one of those dated names.

When actress Rachel Griffiths chose this highly unusual name for her son, many assumed it was a bizarre invention. But a noted Australian poet (Griffiths is an Aussie) is known by this name.

Anike is an attractive name with ties to several cultures, both African and Scandinavian. The African pronunciation emphasizes the second syllable while the Nordic one emphasizes the first. While there will be inevitable confusion over pronunciation, either form is "correct".

A true maverick of a girls' name — even more so with this spelling, the least common between Indie, Indy, and Indi.

Popular pop name, inspired by Australian singer Kylie Minogue. It was at its height in Australia in the 1970s and early 80s; often cited as a Noongar name meaning "boomerang".

Enough parents have found naturalist Charles Darwin, the father of the theory of evolution, a worthy hero to keep Darwin relatively consistently in the Top 1000 (it dropped off in 2021 but is back in 2022)—though some might just like its trendy two-syllable sound. It has a lovely meaning too—"dear friend."

Taj is a cool-sounding name reflecting the magnificence of the seventeenth-century Indian Taj Mahal, chosen by Aerosmith's Steven Tyler for his son.

This cute as a button name stems from the Goonayandi word for the sun and can be used as a unisex name.

In the Noongar language of Western Australia, Bindi means butterfly. Bindi is usually seen as a girls' name, as seen in Bindi Irwin, daughter of the late Steve Irwin.

Half-way between Logan and Rowan, Lowan could be an interesting pick for parents looking for an off-the-beaten-track nature name.

Pippi may be cute but isn't very practical. In addition to being forever Pippi Longstocking, there is that variant pee-pee spelling to consider. Try Pippa instead.

Rosella can be seen as a nature name (a rosella is the name of a variety of beautiful Australian cockatoos and an Australian flower) or a diminutive version of Rose.

Voss is a German name, that is seen in Norway and Australia (in the former it is associated with a region, in the latter it is associated with the protagonist of Patrick White's novel by the same name). Voss is an interesting alternative to Fox.

This Australian name can have other spellings such as Allira, Alirah and Aleara. We prefer this spelling which keeps confusion and mispronunciation to a minimum.

Araluen is a beautiful Aboriginal Australian place name, used in several sites, always connected to the dainty water lily.

When Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman became one of the first Europeans to find Australia, he gave his name to a sea and to an island. in turn some parents have chosen to honor their homeland by choosing this name for their child. Tasma is the feminine version.

Dimity is fairly common in Australia, but unheard of outside of it, which is surprising given its similarity to names like Amity, Verity, and Cassidy.

Pronounced like Jay, this short name is popular in South Asia and makes for a great English-South Asian crossover choice, used regularly in the UK and Australia. It can also be an alternate spelling of the English name Jay, either short for a J name or deriving from the name of the bird.

The Narellan is the name of a river in New South Wales. From this name comes this quasi-French girls' name, which is quite common in Australia.