Italian Girl Names by ViVi

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.

This name, from the picturesque town on the Italian Riviera, borrows a bit from Amelia and a bit from Emily.

Feminine form of Amadeus popular now in Italy and ripe for export. Might also be spelled Amadea. The preferred pronunciation is AHM-a-DAY-a but it may also be pronounced ah-MED-ee-a.

An attractive enough name, but for die-hard Star Wars fans only.

Aria is a multi-cultural name with two extremely popular versions: this more word-like one along with Arya, the spelling used for the feisty young heroine of Game of Thrones. There were about 6400 baby girls named Aria in the US last year alog with 2400 named Arya, which counted together places the name in the Top 10.

This lovely Umbrian hill town became a striking first name for the young daughter of Jade Jagger.

Better saved for a doll.

Although Disney's cute deer was a male, Bambi has always been used for girls. It first appeared on the charts in 1943, the year after the Disney movie was released. Bambi featured in the Top 1000 from 1954-1964 — a decade where girl names ending in I, like Lori and Teri, were big — and again from 1977-1982.

Beauty con brio italiano.

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.

As with the English-language cartoon Blondie, more a description than a name.

Sweet and sparky but maybe a little bit stuck in the 90s, Bria is a nickname-y style choice with various origins.

Possibility for a dark-haired babe.

Naming your child the word for good comes with no guarantees.

Carina is a pretty delicately feminine name whose fall from popularity is not helped by its similarity to hurricane name Katrina or slang victim Karen.

Chiara is a lovely and romantic Italian name that's familiar but not widely used here: a real winner. You might consider Chiara instead of Claire, Clara, Cara, or even Keira.

A name that relates to Concepcion and the Virgin Mary, but feels a good deal more secular.

Literally meaning "lady" in Italian, Donna was the perfect ladylike housewife mom name on The Donna Reed Show in the fifties and sixties. And there were plenty of namesakes: Donna was in the Top 10 in 1964. These days we'd be more likely to associate it with the emanciatpated clothes of Donna Karen than as a baby name.