User-created list
Hobbity names
Across 9 pages
of 9
Larkspur
English botanical name
A rarer-than-rare floral name with a sting in the tail!
Amarantha
Flower name; Greek
"unfading"
Amarantha is a rare botanical name whose mythical equivalent was believed to be immortal. The Italian and Spanish form is the somewhat-more-acccessible Amaranta.
Apricot
Fruit name
A very unique fruit name heard more often on peachy-colored dogs than on baby girls.
Basil
Greek
"royal"
Although Greek in origin--in the fourth century, a bishop by that name established the principles of the Greek Orthodox Church--Basil for years took on the aura of aquiline-nosed upper-class…
Berry
Nature name
With the recent arrival of fruit names like Apple and Plum, this more traditional example, symbolic of fertility, might rise in popularity. Photographer Berry Berenson was born Berinthia.…
Birch
Tree name
Birch is a rarely used nature name that calls to mind the lovely image of the tall, strong but graceful white-barked tree. The best known bearer of the name is former high-ranking Democratic Senator…
Briony
Spelling variation of Bryony, Greek
"to sprout, to swell"
Briony may be the variation and Bryony the original, but many parents will see this as the more authentic-feeling version of this attractive botanical name. Melodic and bright, it was once a Top 400…
Blossom
English
"to bloom"
Now that parents have picked virtually every name in the garden, from the common Rose to the captivating Zinnia, some are reconsidering the old, more generic names like Flora and Posy and Blossom —…
Bluebell
Flower name from English
"blue bell"
Bluebell is one flower name that is used very quietly. Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell joined her former Spice Sisters in creative baby-naming with this adventurous — some might say outlandish —…
Buttercup
Flower name, from English
"yellow wildflower"
Though Buttercup is most often reserved for cows (and pets of other kinds), this humble flower name was given to the princess in "The Princess Bride" and to one of The Power Puff Girls . Yet to rank…
Bramble
Nature name
"blackberry shrub"
Related to blackberry plants and more colloquially to any thorny shrub, Bramble has history as an English surname. Cozy in sound but spiky in feel, it could even get you nickname Bram.
Branch
Word name
Branch is an attractive name with associations both with trees and with branching out into brave new worlds. Baseball's Branch (born Wesley, with Branch as his middle name) Rickey broke the color…
Cherry
English word name
"cherry"
With other fruity names like Clementine, Olive and Plum ripe for the picking, sweet Cherry remains remarkably underused: just 27 baby girls received the name in 2017, down from 343 at its peak in…
Chrysanthemum
Greek
"gold flower"
One of the rarest of the flower names, that of the blossom celebrated in Japan as a symbol of the sun and a possible object of meditation. One of the rare flower names counted among names for autumn…
Coriander
Greek
"bed bug"
This herb is also known as cilantro. It's meaning, "bed bug" is on account of its smell, characterized by the ancient Greeks as bed bug-like.
Dandelion
Flower name, from French
"lion's tooth"
The bright yellow weed lends itself to a creative baby name, although we don't recommend the nickname Dandy.
Delphinium
Flower name, from Greek
"larkspur; dolphin"
Delphinium is the proper name for larkspur. It's also related to names like Delphine, which are connected to dolphins (the flowers were thought to resemble a dolphin's back).
Elwood
English
"elder tree forest"
The "el-" sound is red-hot these days, and a myriad of place names and surnames give this name a wealth of possible namesakes. The main drawback is its kinship to the name of the hero of the Legally…
Fennel
Vegetable and herb name
In the garden of herb names, Rosemary and Basil are perennials and Sage is a new upshoot, but Fennel is a real rarity. The aniseed-tasting plant, used to add flavor to dishes around the world, gets…
Fern
English
"plant name"
Of all the botanicals, Fern has been one of the slowest to move back from the front parlor into the nursery, despite the appealing girl character in the children's classic Charlotte's Web . Fern was…