Birthday Names
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 9 pages
of 9
English from Greek
"leaf"
Petal is the soft and sweet-smelling name of a character in the novel and film, The Shipping News . With the rise of such flower names as Poppy and Posy, we believe Petal — down-to-earth yet romantic…
Latin
"five"
Roman statesman and Caesar rival whose name, like other classical choices, was occasionally used for enslaved people. The Pompeo version could rise again.
Spanish
"fifth"
Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon may be a worthy namesake, but "poncey" is British slang for effeminate. An alternative might be Quintus, this name's Latin equivalent, or one of its variations.
Italian, diminutive of Tomasso
"twin"
Appealing, lively, and distinctive.
Scandinavia
"little mother"
Lillemor is a relatively recent coinage in Scandinavia, where it was most popular in the 1930s and '40s, especially in Sweden. As such, it is considered rather dated in Scandinavia, but it would…
Italian, from Arabic
"warm wind"
A cool and breezy nature name with a stylish sound, used by Volkswagen for one of its cars.
English word name
With River and Ocean becoming mainstream, why not consider Sea?
Spanish, from Greek
"west wind"
Sefarina is dramatic and feminine, but Serafina is far more commonly used. Think of Sefarina as deriving from Zephyr, which can be used as a male name; the female version is Zephyrine or Zephyrina,…
English, contracted form of Thomasina
Tamsin is an offbeat name occasionally heard in Britain and just waiting to be discovered here. U.K. actress Tamsin Greig is a star of the show Episodes , Tamsin Olivier is the daughter of Joan…
Hindi-Sanskrit
"mother or legendary bird"
Delicate and lacy, with less emphasis on the jar syllable.
English, feminine variation of Thomas, Aramaic
Though rarely used now that many parents would rather appropriate men's names than sweeten them with feminine endings, Thomasina does have some vintage appeal. Thomasina Coverly plays a large part in…
African, Yoruba
"mother has returned"
A lively name often used to honor a deceased grandmother in Yoruba culture.
French
"green knoll"
Pleasant-sounding French surname.
"green"
Veridian is a variation on Viridiana or Viridis, meaning green. Veridian is also the name of an American aeronautical company, so we recommend you stick with the alternatives.
"chance, luck"
Chance has risen far on the baby-naming charts, but Hazard has a considerably more dangerous edge. It was the middle name of famed US naval commander Oliver Hazard Perry.
Greek
"yellow horse"
Famous as the long-suffering wife of the philosopher Socrates.
Luganda
"older of twins"
Unusual and attractive name, might be worth considering if you're expecting twins.
Japanese
"fifth son"
Traditional Japanese name for the fifth-born son makes for a unique baby name in the West.
Variation of Mabel or English flower name
"loveable; lily-of-the-valley"
Maybell could be a fanciful spelling of Mabel, which could encourage people to pronounce the last syllable to rhyme with Belle rather than bull, but it is also one of the common names for the…
English
"flower name"
A beautiful smoosh of two stylish vintage girl names, May and Lily, but also the name of a pretty lily of the valley flower with small white blooms.
