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Unique Word Names for Babies

Emma Waterhouse
By Emma Waterhouse
Updated Fri Feb 02 2024
Unique Word Names for Babies

Our favorite unique word names for babies include those that are used in very small numbers, like Samurai and Solstice, as well as those that have never appeared on the US baby names list at all, like Epoch and Everglade. None of the 200 original word names in this list has ever been given to more than 15 babies in any given year.

Along with Solstice and Everglade, other unique nature names for babies that make this list include Acre and Apricity, Fennel and Freesia, Pinto and Pipistrelle. Unique geographical names we think have great baby name potential include Bayou, Islet and Caldera. And rare modern virtue names like Kindred, Parity and Zeal set the right tone for the 2020s and beyond.

If you love word baby names but want to look beyond the obvious Rue and Rose, this list of uncommon and unconventional word name ideas compiled by our wonderful Berry community is for you! Names are ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

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Unique Names

Word Names

  1. Luxury

    • Origin:

      English

    • Meaning:

      "extravagance, opulence"

    • Description:

      A particularly opulent way to get to the nickname Lux (or Luxe).
  2. Sonder

    • Origin:

      Invented name

    • Meaning:

      "the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own"

    • Description:

      A neologism coined for the 2012 Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which aims to come up with new terms for emotions that currently lack words
  3. Tempest

    • Origin:

      English word name

    • Meaning:

      "turbulent, stormy"

    • Description:

      Tempest is one of those names that could go either way. Cool, evocative modern word name? Or asking for trouble? Your call, but if you decide the former image is dominant, be warned that some people will see it as the latter.
  4. Orchard

    • Origin:

      English from Latin

    • Meaning:

      "garden yard"
  5. Selkie

    • Origin:

      Scottish

    • Meaning:

      "seal folk"

    • Description:

      A mystical name with a watery feel to it, selkies are mythical creatures that resemble seals in the water but assume human form on land. Appearing in Scottish folklore, their name comes from the word selch meaning "gray seal".
  6. Nightingale

    • Origin:

      Bird name from German

    • Meaning:

      "night singer"

    • Description:

      Charming nature name made even more appealing by the connection to iconic nurse and statistician Florence Nightingale.
  7. Vespertine

    • Origin:

      Latin

    • Meaning:

      "of the evening"
  8. Apricity

    • Origin:

      Latin

    • Meaning:

      "the warmth of the sun in winter"

    • Description:

      Part-April, part-Felicity, but with the wonderfully whimsical feel of Serendipity. Apricity debuted in the US charts for the first time in 2022.
  9. Isle

    • Origin:

      English

    • Meaning:

      "small island"

    • Description:

      Isla is a contemporary gem, so why not Isle? As an English word name, it takes you straight to the literal definition — a small island — which could have an appealing, aspirational ring to it, for those wanting to raise independent children.
  10. Meridian

    • Origin:

      Latin

    • Meaning:

      "midday / pinnacle"

    • Description:

      In geography, a meridian is a line drawn around the curve of the Earth between the North and South Poles. The term comes from Latin meridianus, meaning "pertaining to midday", and the association with midday has led to the word gaining an added figurative meaning of "pinnacle; culmination".
  11. Lupine

    • Origin:

      Flower name from Latin

    • Meaning:

      "pertaining to the wolf"

    • Description:

      Lupine (spelled Lupin outside of North America) is a flower related to sweetpeas. It was given its wolfish meaning because the plant was said to deplete the soil. Comedian Jenny Slate used it as a middle name for her daughter Ida in 2020.
  12. Minnow

    • Origin:

      English

    • Meaning:

      "small fish"

    • Description:

      This adorable fish name debuted on the baby name charts in 2020, inspired by a young girl character in the Netflix movie Love and Monsters. Minnow resembles well-established girl names Minnie, Willow, and Marlowe.
  13. Quartz

    • Origin:

      Mineral name

    • Description:

      This may be a bit quirky to make it as a name, especially in first place. If you love it, you might try it in the middle.
  14. Ochre

    • Origin:

      Greek, English

    • Meaning:

      "pale yellow"

    • Description:

      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 coloured with iron oxide) and sounds similar to fashionable Oakley. A strong earthy nature name that is both unusual and evocative.
  15. Sonata

    • Origin:

      Music name

    • Description:

      Undiscovered musical form melodious enough to be a hit on the name charts.
  16. Caraway

    • Origin:

      Nature name

    • Description:

      An edible plant used in seed and spice form.
  17. Glacier

    • Origin:

      Nature name, French

    • Meaning:

      "ice"

    • Description:

      Nature names are often associated with Spring and Summer, but Glacier is ideal for a winter baby.
  18. Fennel

    • Origin:

      Vegetable and herb name

    • Description:

      In the garden of herb names, Rosemary and Basil are perennials and Sage is a new upshoot, but Fennel is a real rarity. The aniseed-tasting plant, used to add flavor to dishes around the world, gets its name from the Latin word feniculum, meaning "little hay".
  19. Cosmic

    • Origin:

      Greek

    • Meaning:

      "of the universe or cosmos"
  20. Umbra

    • Origin:

      Latin

    • Meaning:

      "shadow"