Basque Girl Names By ViVi

The name of the French town where a vision of the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared, this name is in the Spanish Top 100 and was, until recently, virtually unheard of elsewhere. Now however it is familiar in Puerto Rico and Chile, and as of 2019, it has been a feature in the US Top 1000.

Alazne is a traditional name in Euskera, the language of the Basque people.

Basque names, indeed the entire Basque language, are unrelated to any other. Arantxa is a diminutive of Arantzazu. This obscure choice was made known by tennis player Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario.

This Basque name is used in a similar way to the Spanish name "Nieves" - that is as a reference to the Virgin Mary. This would make a striking choice for a winter-born baby.

Revolutionary choice.

For the parent who genuinely wants something different, this nature choice is popular in Spain. Downside: connection to words irate and irritation.

Also spelled Leyre and taken from the name of a monastery fortress, the popular and lilting choice in Spain will pose pronunciation problems elsewhere. Among the Top 100 girls' names in Spain, Leire was given to only a handful of baby girls in the US last year.

This name of the French town where a young peasant girl had a vision of the Virgin Mary in 1858 vaulted into the spotlight when Madonna chose it for her daughter, but few other families except for devout Roman Catholics have followed her lead (any more than they've used Rocco for their sons).

Basque name for a Spanish city where the Virgin Mary appeared in medieval times, now a popular girls' name throughout Spain.

As Nerea, in the Spanish Top 100, but this streamlined version is one of those golden choices that's both supremely simple and intriguingly rare.

A variation of the name Nere, both choices are distinctive and accessible. In the Top 20 in Spain.