Favorite Female Names of a Sexagenarian

Adelaide is now heading straight uphill on the coattails of such newly popular sisters as Ava, Ada, and Audrey, and in the company of Adeline and Amelia. It was chosen by actress Katherine Heigl for the name of her second daughter.

Agatha until recently summoned up visions of martyred saints, mauve silk dresses, and high lace collars, but now that some dauntless excavators have begun to resurrect it, we're sure more will follow their lead. Actor Thomas Gibson used it for his daughter in 2004.

While theoretically unisex, this surname name has been edging up the girls’ names list, perhaps originally as an Ashley substitute. One quality in Ainsley's favor: It's remained steadily popular -- but not TOO popular -- for more than 20 years now, ranking consistently around Number 400. That makes it stylish and familiar without showing up everywhere.

Hot young actor Alden Ehrenreich, the new Han Solo, gives this formerly-stodgy surname name an attractive new image, making it a fresh successor to Aiden or Holden. Before it got this fresh shine, Alden was among the classic Thanksgiving baby names.

In music, the term allegro means "quickly, lively tempo," which makes this quintessential Bohemian ballet dancer's name all the more appealing. Allegra is one of the most distinctive yet accessible girl names starting with A.

Althea is a poetic, almost ethereal name found in Greek myth and pastoral poetry, associated in modern times with the great tennis player Althea Gibson, the first African-American to win at Wimbledon.

If you love both unique baby names and flower names for girls, Amaryllis might be a perfect choice for you.

This lovely name from Spenser's The Faerie Queene is borne by a character who represents married love. A related unusual-yet-usable choice: Amabel.

Amory is best known for the hero of Fitzgerald's 1920 This Side of Paradise, Princeton student Amory Blaine. Amory is in some danger of being borrowed by the girls, a la Avery. Alternate spellings Amori or Amorie also relate to the Latin word for love.

Also spelled Anael, this offers a new spin on an old standard. Or even a couple of old standards, if you count Annabelle.

Andrea — a feminine form of Andrew (and a male name in several European cultures) — comes with a good selection of pronunciations — ANN-dree-a, AHN-dree-a, or ahn-DRAY-a — each with a slightly different image: girl next door/slightly affected/downright mysterious

Annabel is a spirited name that embodies quirky British gentility. Appearing in Scotland as early as the twelfth century, where it was a royal name, it also recalls the romantic Edgar Allan Poe poem Annabel Lee, written upon the death of his young wife, Virginia.

This is a long-recognized smoosh name merging Anna with the short form of Elizabeth, and is one of the prettiest combo names, a possible alternative to Annabel.

A compound name with an old-fashioned ring. It only first appeared on the US Top 1000 in 2012. Annalie is a somewhat different name that is nevertheless pronounced the same.

This unjustly neglected floral name has a BBC accent and a Greek mythological heritage: Anthea is an epithet of Hera, the Greek queen of the gods, and her name has been used as poetic symbol of spring.

Bellamy is emerging as an up-and-coming girls' name, an Irish surname-y riff on the super-popular Bella series of names. While the Bella connection makes Bellamy sound a little trendier and more popular than it really is, we see the name possibly rising through the ranks for both genders in the coming years.

Bianca, the livelier Italian and Shakespearean version of Blanche, has been chosen by many American parents since the 1990s, just as Blanca is a favorite in the Spanish-speaking community. Its meaning of white relates to snow, making it one of the prime names for winter babies.

Blythe is Nameberry gem — one of those names that visitors to the site are often searching for, despite the fact it's never ranked in the US charts as a given name.

Caralie is a feminine name with French influences, possibly derived from combining 'cara' (dear or beloved in Latin) with the French suffix '-lie.' The name has a graceful, melodic quality with its three flowing syllables. Caralie projects warmth and charm while maintaining a distinctive character that sets it apart from more common names like Caroline or Rosalie. Though never reaching widespread popularity, Caralie has maintained a quiet presence in naming records since the early 20th century, particularly in North America and France. The name offers versatility with potential nicknames like Cara or Cari, giving it both formal elegance and casual approachability.