User-created list
By ashthedreamer · Updated May 2023
Across 8 pages
of 8
Spanish place name and form of Bethlehem, Hebrew, Turkish
"house of bread; mountainside"
A fast rising choice in the US, Belen is a name with two possible origins. On one hand, it could be a variation — or an anglicization — of Belén, the Spanish form of Bethlehem. This would make it a…
Gaelic
"white shoulder"
Nola, a name with a sleek, enigmatic quality, was used for the much-pursued heroine of Spike Lee's 1986 breakout film, She's Gotta Have It , and again by Woody Allen in Match Point . It's a short…
French, from German
"wealthy"
Odette is the good swan in Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake , a role for which Natalie Portman won an Oscar ---and it would make a particularly sophisticated yet upbeat choice. In fact, it charted in…
Diminutive of Matilda
"battle-mighty"
A favorite in England and Wales where nicknames as given names are very much the norm, Tilly has the potential to catch on in the US, given its similarity to the popular Lily and Ellie and the rising…
German, diminutive of Margarethe
"pearl"
Greta is an Old World name long tied to the iconic Garbo, but now synonymous with environmental activism. In the early 2000s, Greta was showing signs of a comeback, along with other Old Hollywood…
Latin
"warlike"
Marcella is a name of Latin origin, which has been neglected for decades now. Depicted as the world's most beautiful woman in Don Quixote (where it's spelled Marcela), it has plenty of flair and…
Serbo-Croatian
"dawn"
Zora is a meaningful literary heroine name honoring Zora Neale Hurston, an important black writer and leader of the Harlem Renaissance. Spelled Zorah, it is a biblical place name, and is also the…
Russian form of Odesa, Ukrainian place-name
"voyage"
Odessa, (transcribed as Odesa in Ukrainian) is a Ukrainian port city and was given its name by Catherine the Great, who was inspired by Homer's Odyssey . It would make an original and intriguing…
Spanish, Slovene, Lithuanian, Persian, Swedish, Serbian,"life, visible, willow, to see"
"life, visible, willow, to see"
Vida is a multicultural gem, familiar in a number of languages by not overly popular. It featured in the US Top 1000 in the first half of the 20th century, and in recent years, it has seen renewed…
Latin, Germanic, Spanish , Italian., "white, light; elf; dawn"
"white, light; elf; dawn"
Bright, lively, and multicultural, Alba has the vintage mellowness of Alma but spirited feel of Ebba, Phoebe, and Pippa too. Derived from multiple different sources, a recent year saw it appear as a…
"from Antium"
Antonia is stronger than most feminized boys’ names , reflecting the pioneer spirit of Willa Cather's classic novel My Antonia . Antonia is hovering near the bottom of the US popularity list, which…
Greek
"with healing power"
Althea is a poetic, almost ethereal name found in Greek myth and pastoral poetry, associated in modern times with the great tennis player Althea Gibson, the first African-American to win at…
"rock, stone"
A strong Greek name with pan-European charm, Petra is a relatively recent feminization of Peter, though it relates back to an incredible ancient city in Jordan that was rediscovered in the early…
"born on the island of Delos"
Delia is a somewhat neglected southern charmer that stands on its own but also might be short for Adelia or Cordelia. Delia's name is based on that of the Greek island of Delos, which in Greek myth…
French variation of Angela
"angel"
With Angelina becoming so popular thanks to Ms. Jolie, this could be a new twist—but everyone will always misunderstand it as Angelina. While it currently ranks at Number 951 in the US, it's Number…
"most beautiful"
Spelled with either one 'l' or two, Calista came to the fore in 1997 when Calista Flockhart hit it big as Ally McBeal. Flockhart, who bears her mother's middle name, didn't just introduce a name, she…
Italian diminutive of Eleonora or Eleanor, meaning unknown
Its mellifluous sound makes Leonora--which has a rich history and a tie to the popular Leo names-- a keen possibility for revival. Though it's been hiding below the Top 1000 since the 1940s, Leonora…
Italian, German, Dutch, and Polish variation of Eleanor
Makes a serious name frilly and feminine, which, depending on your viewpoint, might be a good or a bad thing. In this case, we vote good.
Variation of Arabella, Latin, Scottish
"yielding to prayer; lovable"
This more succinct form of the elegant Arabella might appeal to those who are looking for a less popular spin on Annabel or those who like the sounds of Arabella but want something with fewer frills.…
Medieval variation of Rosalind
Rosaline, which can be pronounced to rhyme with mine or mean in its final syllable, has a deeper, richer pedigree than it might seem. Rosaline was used twice by Shakespeare and was also used in the…
