Names That Mean Star

Nova

Latin

"new"

Nova has the feel of both newness, from its meaning, and great energy as an astronomical term for a star that increases suddenly in brightness before fading. Nova had some reasonable degree of…

Stella

Latin

"star"

Stella is a name with star quality and sparkle, that manages to sound both ethereal and earthy. Celestial but not otherworldly, it lands somewhere between the popular Ella and bold Seraphina. The…

Esther

Persian

"star"

Esther was derived from the Old Persian word stāra , meaning "star." In the Old Testament, Esther, originally named Hadassah, was the captured Jewish wife of the King of Persia who risked her life to…

Lyra

Greek

"lyre"

Lyra is a name with ancient and celestial roots that's found new popularity thanks to its starring role in Philip Pullman's book series, His Dark Materials and its subsequent movie and TV adaptions.…

Estella

Latinate form of Estelle

"star"

Estella is a pretty Latin name, most notably associated with the character in Dickens's Great Expectations , adopted and raised to reek Miss Haversham's revenge on men. With the popularity of Stella,…

Estelle

French

"star"

Maybe it's because she shares that winning -elle sound with Isabel and Bella, but Estelle is no longer seen as a muumuu-wearing canasta player of a certain age (think George Costanza's mother on…

Estrella

Spanish

"star"

Bright and vibrant but elegant too, Estrella is a rising star among Hispanic families that would make a good cross-cultural choice too. A Spanish word name that literally means "star", it is similar…

Roxanne

Persian

"dawn"

Best known as the beautiful heroine to whom Cyrano de Bergerac says, "Your name is like a golden bell". After peaking in 1954, the name dipped out of the Top 1000 in 2012. It returned at Number 986…

Sidra

Latin, Hebrew, Arabic

"like a star; order, sequence; lotus tree"

Sidra is an uncommon name shared by a gulf off the coast of Libya. Popular in the Jewish community of North Africa, its Hebrew meaning refers to a weekly reading portion of the Torah. In Arabic, it's…

Danica

Slavic

"morning star"

While Danica may sound similar to Dana, Danielle, and Daniela, Danica is not a variation. Danica, a delicate and unique Slavic name meaning "Morning Star," is synonymous with Venus in many countries.…

Venus

Latin

"love, desire"

The name of a heavenly planet and the Roman goddess of beauty and love was an intimidating no-no until tennis champ Venus Williams put an athletic, modern spin on it. Associated with the Greek…

Star

Word name

Most parents today would prefer the softer-sell Stella. But Star has symbolic power related to Christmas, so this could make one of the perfect names for December babies .

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…

Roxana

Persian

"dawn; or, little star"

The name of the wife of Alexander the Great, more attractive than the better-known Roxanne. Roxana was first used in the English-speaking world in the 1600s and was popularized by Daniel Defoe's…

Vesper

Latin

"evening star"

This Latin word used for evening spiritual services was introduced to baby namers by the Eva Greene character Vesper Lynd in the modern James Bond film Casino Royale in 2006, based on the Ian Fleming…

Astra

Latin

"stars"

A starry-eyed, intergalactic name, far rarer than Stella or Esther. It's attached both to a comic book character and to Princess Astra on "Doctor Who".