User-created list
American Place Names
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Hawaii
Place-name
An actual Hawaiian first name would convey the aura of the islands more originally and effectively.
Indiana
American place-name
"land of the Indians"
This state name emerged in the eighties along with westerners Dakota and Montana, and it's still used occasionally by high-profile parents such as Summer Phoenix and Casey Affleck. Action man Indiana…
Jersey
English place name, Old Norse
"Geirr's island"
An established place name, associated with a sunny island in the English Channel, the Garden State in the US, knitted pullovers, reality TV, and a Broadway musical. It peaked in the late 2000s and…
Juneau
Place-name
Juneau could go either way as a name. The newfound fame of the movie heroine Juno knocks this unrelated though identical-sounding Alaskan name out of consideration for boys, for the moment. Though…
Maine
Place-name
Strong and spare state name, maybe better in the middle -- or for a boy.
Philadelphia
Greek place-name
"brotherly love"
Place-name mentioned in the New Testament and not yet on the name map. Philadelphia Thursday was the character played by Shirley Temple in John Ford's 1948 "Fort Apache."
Tennessee
Native American, Cherokee, place-name
"bend in the river or meeting place"
When playwright Thomas Lanier Williams adopted the pen name of Tennessee, he created a new possibility among American place-names, although it's admittedly a bit bulky in size. Reese Witherspoon…
Texas
Place-name
After Dallas, Austin, and Houston, the new cowboy on the block. Old-school Western nickname: Tex.
Utah
American place name, Ute
"people of the mountains"
This would make a startling but likable choice; poet Dylan Thomas used it for a character in his play "Under Milk Wood."
Vermont
French
"green mountain"
Place-name waiting to be discovered.
Wyoming
Place-name
A possibility for your li'l cowgirl.
Boulder
Nature name
A tough and rugged nature name.
Burbank
English
"riverbank where burrs grow"
Beautiful downtown Burbank -- about as glamorous a place-name as Akron...or Detroit.
Miami
Place-name
Miami -- or Florida, for that matter -- hasn't achieved the place-name stardom of southern sisters like Savannah and Georgia. Quincy Jones used it as his daughter KENYA's middle name.
Atlanta
American place name from Greek
"Atlantic Ocean"
The capital of Georgia is far from the ocean, but got its name from the Western and Atlantic Railroad which ran through the city. Best known as a hub of industry and transport, and for its roles in…
Boise
Boise as a masculine name takes inspiration from the city of Boise, Idaho, which itself derives from the French word "boisé" meaning "wooded." This place name has occasionally been adopted as a…
Chicago
American place name, Algonquin
"wild garlic"
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian have done it again for their third child: Chosen a name that feels iconic yet strangely inevitable. They named North and Saint's younger sister Chicago, after Kanye's…
Lexington
English place name
Lexington is trending as a unisex name, used just about evenly for the genders. For Americans, it's got a patriotic feel, given the importance of Lexington, Massachusetts in the Revolutionary War.…
Portland
English
"land near the port"
There are two lovely Portlands, in Maine and Oregon, but not many babies with their name.
Baltimore
Place name, English from Irish
"town of the big house"
With place names extending their range, this is an unmapped possibility, though a bit stiff. Baltimore, Maryland was named after Cecil Calvert, the 2nd Baron Baltimore. Baltimore is ultimately…