Poetic Baby Names

Phenex is a demon known as one of the Great Marquis of Hell, ruling over legions of demons. He is known for science and poetry.

Assia is a Muslim name, best known in the Western world via tragic poet Assia Wevill, who was married to British poet Ted Hughes after Sylvia Plath and also committed suicide.

The haunting Lorca is a place name from the Spanish province of Navarre, but far more famous as the surname of the eminent Spanish poet and playwright Federico Garcia Lorca, who was the direct inspiration for the name of Leonard Cohen's now-grown daughter Lorca.

Hip new middle-name choice, conjuring up the gothic tales of Edgar Allan, and current single-named pop singer Poe.

Attached in Irish mythology to a Cliona who was, among other things, an inspirer of poets. Cliona is well-used in modern Ireland, along with Irish form Cliodhna, though it's largely unknown in the rest of the world.

Kyōka Izumi was a 19th-century surrealist author. He was a man, but a female character in the anime series Bungo Stray Dogs was named after him in full.

The name of the character in Edmund Spenser's "The Faerie Queene" whom the poet intended as a representation of Queen Elizabeth I. While it will no doubt thrill your daughter's English professor, the addition of the "Bel" to already great Phoebe is on the fussy side.

Kahlil, spelled in various ways, was first brought into the American consciousness by the poet Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet.

Caedmon is considered the first English poet -- a nice literary tie-in to the streamlined version.

The Hindu princess and poetess Meera, was also known as Mira Bai. Mira Bai was a Rajput princess, the only child of Ratan Singh, younger brother of the ruler of Merta. Her royal education included music and religion as well as instruction in politics and government. In the West we usually think of such traditional names as Charlotte and George as royal baby names, but this adventurous choice breaks the mold. Mirabai combined the Sanskrit "Mira" (meaning ocean) with the suffix -bai (historically added to the names of women as a sign of respect).

Poet is a new entry in both the trendy word and occupational categories as well as a member of the growing group of gender neutral names. A handful of baby boys received the name in the US last year. A perfect choice, especially in the middle, for the child of writers or those with a poetic bent. And Po is an adorable nickname for either gender.

A Greek goddess of music and poetry, Danae has a novel yet familiar sound.

What a lovely name for the much-longed for daughter - no wonder Aino is in the Top 5 in Finland, whence the name originates. Like other popular Finnish names, Aino is short and avoids the ubiquitous "a" ending we usually see in feminine names, which gives it a fresh feel and sound.

Noted bearers of this surname include a metaphysical poet, a Nobel Prize winner, and a baseball Hall of Famer, so there's plenty of hero-name inspiration.

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an Akkadian poem from Mesopotamia and one of the oldest works of literature that survives today. It follows the story of Gilgamesh, a Sumerian king who journeys to find the secret to immortality. Gilgamesh's name is so strongly tied to the epic, that it would be difficult to wear by anyone else.

This name was consistently in the boys' Top 200 until WW2. It's a name with so many dimensions to it: the hyper-masculine meaning, the surname-as-firstname trendiness, and the softer sound and connotation since homophone Carol was favoured in the 1940s and '50s for daughters. We think it's time for a resurgence of Carrolls amongst the boys.

An Irish surname name with a combination of boldness and élan. Some might connect it to the founder of the group T. Rex -- Marc Bolan.

A variation of an old Irish saint’s name, Liadin, and the name of a lovelorn poetess in Irish folk legend. Be prepared for some clumsy pronunciation outside Ireland, however.

In Irish legend Caoilte or Caílte was a warrior of the Fianna and their foremost poet.