Names That Mean Flower

Jacinta, the Spanish word for hyacinth, is a lot softer and sweeter than the English version. The correct Spanish pronunciation is ha-SEEN-ta, though many English speakers would say ja-SIN-ta. Although the name is slightly different, Jacinta is largely associated at present with Australian-born actress Jacinda Barrett.

Madelief is an uncommon name but not unheard of in the Netherlands, where 123 girls were called Madelief in one recent year. With its soft sounds and similarities to all those "Madeleine" type names as well as names ending in "eef/eev" sounds (Aoife, Eve, Genevieve), Madelief has potential in English-speaking countries to be a fresh and pleasant change from Daisy, Margaret and Madeleine.

This unique girls' name is a Latinx favorite popularized by a character on a Spanish-language soap opera. Jessenia is another variation. The name is drawn from the name of a tree in South America.

Common Russian name familiarized here via cosmonaut Yury Gagarin and a character in Dr. Zhivago, but we don't see it ever gaining permanent resident status.

If you're looking for an unusual alternative to all those Rose names, Rhoswen might be a good choice. This name has the soft sounds we've come to love from the Welsh language but is still not as familiar as Bronwen and Rhiannon.

Any of the Y forms, which also include Yasmeen, Yasmin, and Yasmina, make this name more unusual and distinctive.

Diantha, a mythological flower of the supreme Greek god Zeus, is a melodious and more unusual cousin of Diana, heard most often in The Netherlands.

To those who remember, Rhoda is still reminiscent of the brassy Bronx 1970s sitcom Rhoda Morgenstern. But Rhoda has a much longer history--it is a name that can be found in the New Testament as a servant girl in the house of Mary, mother of John. Later, Rhoda appeared in the novel Vanity Fair and the Shaw play Man and Superman.

Ethereal combination of Arden and Edith, with a sweet naturey meaning.

Unusual floral name which would be perfect for a spring baby girl, if you can pronounce the Welsh double L correctly. It's a tricky sound for non-native Welsh speakers, kind of halfway between an H and an L.

Suzette has a kind of clunky retro charm – so kitsch it's almost cool again.

Vivacious but lightweight.

Jessamy and big sister Jessamine are all but unknown in the U.S., but make distinctive alternatives to overexposed Jessica, Jessie, and Jasmine.

Anara is a name that strikes a perfect balance between simple and unusual. It's easy to understand and pronounce for a Westerner, and yet it's highly distinctive, used for only 24 girls in the US in 2021. A recommended and unusual nature option.

The bell-shaped flower Aletris is also known as Colic Root, Blazing Star, Unicorn Root, and Stargrass. Its roots have medicinal properties and are used to aid digestive and muscle problems. Its name derives from Greek aletris — an enslaved woman who ground corn — because of the mealy texture of the flowers.

The th sound both softens and complicates this Melanie relative.

Attractive but slight Asian alternative, with a 1970s nickname feel.

The Hawaiian word for sunflower is also used figuratively for people who gaze toward the sun, and has a nice resonance with Lion King name Nala.

Like many a popular name, Ornella is a theatrical creation. Italian playwright Gabriele d'Annunzio created this name for his dramatic heroine in the 1904 play La Figlia di Iorio. Ornella is a feminization of the orno or ornello, which is the Italian word for the Fraxinus Ornus, a type of tree which produces such sweet sap that it was compared to biblical manna.

Fiorello is one of the few floral names that works well for a boy. The colorful three-term World War II New York Mayor La Guardia made this one famous -- in fact he was nicknamed "the Little Flower". His life was the basis for the 1959 musical called, appropriately, "Fiorello!"