Alternatives for Isabelle and Isabella
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Isabelle and Isabella are still widely popular names across the globe, so here are a list of alternative names that you may not have considered before.
- Abigail
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"my father is joyful"Description:
Abigail has been in for so long -- the name has ranked in the US Top 100 since the late 1980s -- it's amazing that it isn't more out by now. But Abigail's biblical and historic roots make it a fashionable classic rather than a passing fad.
- Adela
Origin:
GermanMeaning:
"noble"Description:
A vibrant variation of Adele, with a bit of extra flair from that "-a" ending. It could join the army of popular A girls' names, especially with its tie to the success of singer Adele.
- Adele
Origin:
French diminutive of AdelaideMeaning:
"noble, nobility"Description:
Credit the award-winning single-named British singer for taking the girls’ name Adele from a quiet semi-retirement back into currency. Adele reentered the US Top 1000 popular baby names in 2011 and has remained there ever since.
- Annabelle
Origin:
Combination of Anna and Belle or French form of AmabelMeaning:
"loving"Description:
This is a charming name that rose steeply along with other-belle names, such as Isabelle, until the horror film Annabelle and its sequels knocked it out of favor. Made famous by the Edgar Allen Poe poem Annabel Lee. Annabelle is saucy and stylish, a tad upscale, has a sense of humor, is melodious and lively, but is unfortunately off its peak.
- Arabella
Origin:
Latin, ScottishMeaning:
"yielding to prayer; lovable"Description:
Arabella, lovely and elegant, has long been well used in Britain and finally made it onto the American list in 2005. A Top 50 choice in the UK, in the US in remains in the Top 300, given to around 1300 babies each year.
- Ariel
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"lion of God"Description:
Ariel is a male Biblical name, seen there as the messenger of Ezra, and also used as a symbolic name for the city of Jerusalem, while Shakespeare used it for a (male) sprite in The Tempest.
- Arielle
Origin:
French variation of ArielMeaning:
"lion of God"Description:
While not as popular as the Ariel spelling of Little Mermaid fame, this rendition has achieved popularity in its own right.
- Aurielle
- Bella
Origin:
Diminutive of Isabella, ItalianMeaning:
"beautiful"Description:
Everything ella, from Ella to Bella to Arabella, is red hot right now. Bella is one of the most, well, beautiful girl names starting with B. It carried a hint of a nice Old World grandmotherly veneer, until it became attached to Twilight's Bella Swan.
- Belle
Origin:
Short form of Isabelle or FrenchMeaning:
"beautiful"Description:
Belle has nothing but positive associations, from "belle of the ball" to "Southern belle" to the heroine of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. As if this weren't enough good things, Belle is also one of the most familiar and usable names that mean beautiful. Though it has been overshadowed by the Twilight-influenced Bella and longer forms like Isabella and Annabella, Belle has its own Southern charm and would make a pretty choice as a first or middle name.
- Bluebell
Origin:
Flower name from EnglishMeaning:
"blue bell"Description:
Bluebell is one flower name that is used very quietly. Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell joined her former Spice Sisters in creative baby-naming with this adventurous -- some might say outlandish -- choice. Distinctive and charming? Or better suited to a farmyard animal? Your call.
- Brielle
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"hunting grounds"Description:
Though it sounds so modern, Brielle is, among other things, a traditional Cajun contraction of Gabrielle, but it has now spread far beyond that community. Brielle is also the name of a historic seaport in the western Netherlands.
- Clarabelle
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"bright and beautiful"Description:
A combination name that might be dismissed as a clown and cow name. The sounds are nevertheless pretty and the meaning is good - though spellings Claribel or Clarabel might help distance it from the cow association.
- Danielle
Origin:
French feminine variation of Daniel, HebrewMeaning:
"God is my judge"Description:
Along with Daniela, Michelle, Nicole, and Denise, Danielle was a big hit from the 1960s to the nineties, sitting comfortably in the Top 20 for several years. Parents then responded to its chic, sophisticated Gallic image, and though it has lost some of its sheen, it's still a widely used choice.
- Ebele
Origin:
AfricanMeaning:
"mercy, kindness"Description:
Igbo name made more familiar by its relationship to the popular Belle and Bella.
- Eleanor
Origin:
English variation of French Provencal Alienor, meaning unknownDescription:
Eleanor's straightforward feminine image combined with its royal medieval history is striking just the right note for parents in search of a girls' name that combines substance and style.
- Ella
Origin:
German; EnglishMeaning:
"all, completely; fairy maiden"Description:
Ella is a sweet, simple name that owes much of its current popularity to the popularity of other names, from Emma to Bella to Emily to Ellie.
- Elle
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"she"Description:
Combine the charming heroine of the movie Legally Blonde with supermodel Elle Macpherson and the trend toward all names beginning with "el"—Ellie, Ella, Eleanor—and you have one hit name.
- Estella
Origin:
Latinate form of EstelleMeaning:
"star"Description:
Estella is a pretty Latin name that's sounding more and more stylish, remembered as the ward of Miss Haversham in Dickens's Great Expectations. Though Estella ranked as high as Number 110 in the 1880s, it now sits near the bottom of the US Top 1000 along with near-twin Estelle. Either would be well worth considering as an alternative to the popular Stella.
- Estelle
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"star"Description:
Maybe it's because she shares that winning -elle sound with Isabel and Bella, but Estelle is no longer seen as a muumuu-wearing canasta player of a certain age (think George Costanza's mother on Seinfeld or Joey Tribbiani's talent agent in Friends). This could be in part thanks to the young Royal Couple of Sweden, who chose it for their firstborn daughter, or the single-named British R&B singer. It reentered the US Top 1000 in 2012 after a nearly fifty-year absence.