User-created list
By Fiery~Red~Fox · Updated May 2023
Across 4 pages
of 4
Swiss place-name or French
"juniper tree"
Unlike its somewhat formal Swiss city namesake, this is a lively and appealing place-name that also has a real history as a female name. Geneva was a relatively popular American name at one time: it…
African place-name, Maasi
"cold water"
Kenya is fairly commonly heard as a girl's name, but its capital city makes a much more exceptional choice. The name comes from the Maasai phrase "Enkare Nairobi," which translates to "cold water."…
Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese
"river or place of the cherry blossoms"
Rio is one of Japan's most popular girls' names, constantly sitting in that country's Top 10. Of course, Rio may also stem from the Portuguese and Spanish word for river, and the Brazilian city Rio…
English variation of Italia, Italian place name
Why has it taken so long for us to discover Italy? The name, that is. For decades, we have been using Italian place names (and those adjacent) like Rome, Roman, Milan, Milana, Capri, Florence, and…
Place-name from Papago Indian
"little springs"
We usually think of place-names as a modern invention, but in fact Arizona ranked on the US Top 1000 from its inception in 1880 until 1911, when it vanished below the surface. It peaked at Number 510…
American place-name
"land of the Indians"
Indiana is one of those place-names (think Camden and Trenton) that sounds cooler than the place that inspired it. Its fashionable -ana ending certainly sounds eminently name-like, and…
Greek
"from Mount Olympus"
With its relation to Mount Olympus, home of the Greek gods, and to the Olympic games, this name has an athletic, goddess-like aura, making it the perfect Olivia substitute. A well-known art reference…
Place name
Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin put Ireland on the map when they chose it as a first for their daughter, saying that geographic names were a family tradition. And it seems they were a bit ahead of the…
Place name, Kikuyu
"mountain of white"
Kenya, a name borrowed from the East African nation and theoretically unisex, is now used mostly for girls. While it's had its ups and downs since entering the US Top 1000 in 1968, it currently ranks…
English place-name
Out-of-the-way place name (it's an antiquated holiday spot on England's south coast) that might make a brilliant choice. Actor/director Jon Favreau named his daughter Brighton Rose.
Native American
"great land"
State name Alaska stems from an Aleutian word for the land mass itself. The number of baby girls named Alaska has doubled in the past five years, and is sure to continue increasing as more place…
Spanish, Portuguese, from French, meaning unknown
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…
Spanish
"angels"
A spiritually significant name used in honor of the Virgin Mary. In Spanish, her title is Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles , meaning "Our Lady the Queen of the Angels."
Hebrew
"the province"
Galilee is a highly unusual place name, Galilee being a large region in northern Israel, the home of Jesus during at least thirty years of his life, and also where he cured a blind man. The Sea of…
German
"borderline"
Edgy German capital with definite possibilities as a baby name, Berlin was chosen for nearly 60 girls and 25 boys in 2024.
Spanish place-name
"covered in snow"
Named for its snowcapped mountains, Nevada is a state name which, unlike Carolina, Montana, and Dakota, has been relatively undiscovered. Warning: today's unvisited place-name could become tomorrow's…
English variation of Brasilia, Portuguese place name
"land of brazilwood; ember-colored land"
Place-name with character.
Italian place-name
Verona is a scenic place-name with the added attraction of a Shakespearean connection, as in Two Gentlemen of ....
This name of one of the most romantic cities in the world could easily find its way onto an American baby girl's birth certificate.
Brixton, the name of a neighborhood in London, is one of the fastest-rising place-names for baby boys, up more than 100 points on the most recent US popularity list. Besides its association with the…
