Birthday Names
May Names
Across 9 pages
of 9
Lillemor
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…
Linnea
Swedish
"twinflower, lime tree"
Linnea is an attractive Scandinavian name that derives from the renowned 18th century Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, who developed the Linnean system of classifying plants and animals. Linnea is…
Makani
Hawaiian
"wind"
The sources that do list this name give it as a boys' name, but Woody Harrelson chose it for his daughter, and it does have a feminine lilt.
Maso
Italian, diminutive of Tomasso
"twin"
Appealing, lively, and distinctive.
May
Diminutive of Margaret and Mary; month name
May is a sweet old-fashioned name that hasn't been on the national charts in several decades, but is definitely sounding fresh and springlike. Parents are beginning to see it once more as one of the…
Medora
Greek
"mother's gift"
Medora is a Greek name much less common here than, say, Melanie or Melissa. It has some literary references, including as the beautiful and passionate heroine of Lord Byron's poem The Corsair, and in…
Moa
Swedish
"mother"
Moa was among the Top 100 Swedish baby names throughout the 2000s and 2010s, though it has since declined in use. Pronounced as MOO-ah in Sweden, it is virtually unknown in the US. Could Moa make an…
Nasim
Arabic and Urdu
"breeze, fresh air"
A unisex Arabic name with a fresh and nature related meaning, Nasim may also be spelled as Naseem in Urdu and Arabic, and as Nesim in Turkish. Used predominantly on boys in Iran, it leans feminine in…
Neith
Egyptian
"divine mother"
One of the more unusual mythology names for girls , Neith is the name of the Egyptian goddess of home and femininity.
Nightingale
Bird name from German
"night singer"
Charming nature name made even more appealing by the connection to iconic nurse and statistician Florence Nightingale.
Ochre
Greek, English
"pale yellow"
Ochre is an exceedingly rare name, found only a few times since the nineteenth century, and not showing up in any current data. Yet it means much the same thing as popular Sienna (another clay…
Odion
Esan
"first born of twins"
Strong name from the Esan language of Nigeria, with a satisfyingly specific meaning for a child's place in the family.
Orla
Irish
"golden princess"
Orla is an Irish name closely associated with the high king Brian Boru, as it was the name of his sister, daughter and niece. It was very popular in the Middle Ages – the fourth most popular name in…
Orna
Irish
"little pale green one"
This Irish saint's name sounds like a lopped-off Lorna.
Orson
Latin and English
"bear cub"
In the past, Orson has felt like a one-person moniker, tied to film director Orson Welles, who dropped his given name of George in favor of his more distinctive middle. While the Citizen Kane creator…
Petal
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…
Phyllis
Greek
"green bough"
Phyllis has been used by classical poets for the idealized pastoral maiden. A Greek mythological name of a woman who was turned into an almond tree, Phyllis was in the Top 100 from 1916 to 1958,…
Pollux
Greek
"very sweet"
Made cool by that final X (as seen in Felix, Lennox, and Rex), Pollux is the Romanized form of Polydeukes, the half-twin of Castor, and the son of Zeus and Leda. Associated with the Gemini…
Pompey
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.