kkilgallon's list "My Unexpected Choices" of 3 great name ideas: Mireille - Angeline!

My Unexpected Choices

The names that I like for either meaning, sound, or style but can't really see myself giving them to my children. Maybe these are the names that a year from now may be on my short list but for now they rest in my backup bank

A pretty name that may pose pronunciation problems for non-French speakers or those who've never encountered it, but it is worth the effort. Pronounced meer-AY (or closer to MEE-RAY in French), it comes from the Occitan word mirar meaning "to admire". 
 
Popular in France in the 20th century, it peaked in 1949 when it briefly entered the Top 20, however, it has been out of style in its native country since the 80s. In the US, it was given to just 13 girls in 2025, making it a rare choice.
 
International forms of the name include the Spanish Mireya and Mireia , the Italian Mirella, and the Albanian and Croatian Mirela.

Mireille

Also appearing as Sidra, this botanical name has roots in Persian, and holds multiple levels of spiritual significance. It refers to the Ziziphus spina-christi, a spikey, evergreen plant, also known as the Christ's thorn jujube, the sidr or the lote tree.
 
In Islamic tradition, the name is associated with the Sidrat al-Muntahā (or "Sidr Tree of the Farthest Boundary"), which marks the end of the seventh heaven: the point at which angels cannot pass or know about. During the prophet Muhammad's Night Journey into Heaven, he is accompanied up to this point by the angel Gabriel.
 
The Ziziphus spina-christi is also said to be the tree from which Jesus's crown of thorns were made, while in Baháʼí literature (a faith that promotes the worth of all religions), it is linked to the Manifestation of God (or the prophets).

Sadira

With Angelina becoming so popular thanks to Ms. Jolie, this could be a new twist—but everyone will always misunderstand it as Angelina. While it currently ranks at Number 951 in the US, it's Number 352 in France.