The "mahlet" is a chant that priests in the Ethiopian Orthodox church perform during the night to praise and give thanks to God. Pronounced with three syllables, Mahlet is also used as a first name for girls.

In the Plymouth Colony of the seventeenth century, Thankful was the third most popular of the abstract word names. It disappeared after 1700 and has virtually no chance of returning.

Sami is cute if overused in its more familiar Sammy form.

Gracious African choice.

Football fans just might want to honor star footballer Ahman Green, whose name can be seen as a variation of AHMED or AHMAD.

This bold musical word name is given to just a handful of baby girls per year in the US, but it has a very contemporary sound. Hallie and Lou/Lulu would make for more mainstream nicknames. Lovers of the music and lyrics of Leonard Cohen might also appreciate the link to one of his most successful hits.

Short form of Dumisani

Kaena is a pleasant sounding unisex Hawaiian place name, the westernmost point of the island of Oahu. In the computer-generated fantasy movie Kaena: The Prophecy, the character of Kaena is voiced by Kirsten Dunst.

A common form of Muhammad in Turkey, where the spelling Muhammed is also used. In the US, Mehmet is commonly known as the first name of Dr. Oz.

Courageous sister of Raskolnikov in Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment.

A cool Greek name which is related to Sebastian.

This name can be used for either girls or boys and is a great international choice.

A classic Japanese name known to kids around the world as a Nintendo video-game character.

Top 50 pick in Slovenia, where it is a form of Aeneas, the mythological son of Venus. Anej peaked in Slovenia in 2007, when it ranked Number 15.

The name of a beautiful princess of Wales in Arthurian legend, Esmeree appears the French romance poem Le Bel Inconnu (The Fair Unknown) written by Renaut de Bâgé in the 12th-century. In the poem, Esmeree, who has been cursed into the form of a serpent, is rescued by Gingalain, a son of Sir Gawain.

Itta is a cute old-fashioned name that arose parallelly as a nickname for Yehudit, used among Ashkenazi Jews, and a variation of Ita, an Irish name.

This variation of Muhammed is not as popular as some, but it still is a widely used choice.

Generally used in conjunction with another name to form a religious phrase -- for instance the daughter of rapper DMX is called Praise Mary Ella.

An interesting cousin of Natalie (the 'h' is silent) found in the Louisiana Cajun community, Athalie is the name of a tragedy by classic French playwright Racine.

A name from ancient legend: Amlodd (also spelled Amlawdd) Wledig is recorded as being an early British chieftain. Some sources name him as the father of Igraine, the mother of King Arthur. It has been co-opted as a suitable fantasy-sounding name into the online game Runescape.