User-created list
By Dark Angel · Updated May 2023
Across 27 pages
of 27
French
"cherry"
Infinitely preferable to the tease-inspiring English version of the word.
Spice name
"orange-yellow color; a type of crocus"
Spice names are increasingly appealing to the senses of prospective parents; this one, belonging to a precious spice derived from the crocus has a vaguely orange-scented-incense sixties feel. English…
Swedish word name
"story; seeress"
Apt name for a little drama queen with a long future ahead of her. Saga is a Top 30 girls' name in Sweden. Saga was the Norse goddess of poetry, storytelling, and history. She was a prophetess — able…
English from Italian
"little song"
Could there be a more poetic name than Sonnet? Actor Forest Whitaker was inspired to choose it for his daughter. The word sonnet derives from the Italian sonetto , meaning 'little song.' And although…
Sanskrit, Latin
"shore, sail"
Vela is one of those rare names that is at once simple, straightforward, authentic, and unusual, at least in the Western World. Besides being an Indian girls' name, Vela is a Southern sky…
Italian variation of Vivian
"life"
Vivia, the fresh Italian version of newly popular name, streamlines and even vivifies the original.
Greek, feminine variation of Dion
"divine"
Dionne is an Americanized version of the Greek Dione, with many sub-versions of its own, identified with singer Dionne Warwick. It was also the surname of the Canadian quintuplets born in 1934, who…
English, bird name
A kestrel is a bird of prey. It has good potential as a strong girls' name, similar to Falcon for boys.
Hebrew
"light of Jehovah"
Neriah is a biblical figure mentioned in the Book of Jeremiah as the father of Baruch and Seraiah ben Neriah. According to the Talmud, Neriah and his sons are all prophets. The name is traditionally…
English word name
"rejoice"
Revel is a joyous word name that may appeal to parents wanting a non-traditional Biblical choice or simply a name that expresses how they feel.
Variation of Zita or Greek letter name
The sixth letter of the Greek alphabet, popularized by Welsh actress Catherine Zeta-Jones -- Zeta was her grandmother's first name. Zeta can also refer to the letter Z, the last in the Roman…
German
"industrious"
Amory is the kind of executive-sounding surname name that became popular in the 1990s. Amory Blaine is the protagonist of the F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, This Side of Paradise .
Greek
"violet flower"
This unusual Greek flower and color name has gained considerable recent attention via actress Ione Skye, who is the daughter of sixties folksinger Donovan. Ione was one of the fifty sea nymphs —…
Variation of Leanne, English combination of Lee + Anne
"meadow grace"
Lianne is occasionally used independently, but fairly flimsy. Our advice: Keep looking for a name that carries more individual authority.
Occitan pet form of French Liliane, or French compound of Lili and Louise
"lily; lily + renowned warrior"
Sweet, enchanting Lilou is considered both a pet name from the Occitan language (spoken in Provence in the south of France), and a compound name, blending floral Lili with classic Louise. It peaked…
Latin
"born in June"
Junius is one of those names that's growing on us, along with many of its Roman countrymen such as Julius and Atticus. We once thought it was a combination of the least attractive elements of Junior…
"bright"
This name of a tragic figure in Greek mythology, the daughter of King Minos, sister of Ariadne and wife of Theseus, has a mysterious and intriguing appeal, and would make a dramatic choice. Phaedra…
Modern invented name
Whether you think of it as Cale with a K, or a pet form of Kalen or Kaleb, this is just the kind of short, synthetic name finding a lot of favor now, but remember -- it's also the name of a vegetable.
"golden, yellow"
X marks the spot in names these days, usually at the middles or ends of names, but here is one that puts it squarely up front. This extravagant name, which, like many Greek names beginning with X, is…
"shade"
A light, bohemian-sounding biblical name, mentioned in the bible as a wife of Lamech, one of the first men.
