feminine names beginning with b

Brooklyn

English Place name from Dutch

"marshland"

Extreme makeover: Brooklyn has gone from jokey Borough Boy name in the 1990s to a leading girls' name starting with B . The status of New York's Brooklyn as hipster heaven is ironic as few bona fide…

Bella

Diminutive of Isabella, Italian

"beautiful"

Everything ella, from Ella to Bella to Arabella, is red hot right now. Bella is one of the most, well, beautiful girl names starting with B . It carried a hint of a nice Old World grandmotherly…

Brielle

Short form of Gabrielle, French, Cajun, Hebrew, Celtic

"god is my strength; hunting grounds"

Though it sounds modern, Brielle is, among other things, a traditional Cajun contraction of Gabrielle, and the name of a historic seaport in the Western Netherlands, also known as Brill. Today, it is…

Blair

Scottish

"dweller on the plain"

In the USA, Blair is gaining momentum, rising quickly for the last 10 years and likely to continue to climb. In England and Wales, where Blair has political connotations – calling to mind former…

Bailey

English occupational name

"law enforcer, bailiff"

Bailey — a jaunty surname — was first used for a female TV character in 1978 in the show WKRP in Cincinnaati , then caught on big time. Bailey's still an appealing choice, though, and a celebrity…

Brianna

Feminine variation of Brian

"strong, virtuous and honorable"

Brianna's popularity in the US came later than father name Brian's, peaking in the 1990s, two decades after Brian's Top 10 reign of the 1970s. But Brianna is more popular than Brian now, along with…

Blake

English

"fair-haired, dark"

The unisex Blake, which indeed has two conflicting meanings, has a briskly efficient image when used for a girl. Though in the eighties it was seen very much as a boys’ name , epitomized by the…

Brooke

English

"small stream"

Brooke has long projected an aura of sleek sophistication, and can also be seen as a stylish water name. It was Brooke Shields (born Christa) who took it from quietly fashionable to ultra trendy when…

Blaire

English variation of Blair, Scottish

"dweller on the plain"

Blair with a little something extra, which some parents may feel feminizes the name. The Blaire spelling was given to a surprising number of baby girls, with about a third of baby girls with the name…

Bonnie

Scottish

"beautiful, cheerful"

Bonnie is an adorable nickname name, heading back up the popularity list after a 50-year nap. A Top 100 girls' name throughout the rest of the English-speaking world, Americans are later to jump on…

Briar

English

"a thorny patch"

Fairy-tale memories of Sleeping Beauty inspire some parents—such as Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen—to call their daughters Briar Rose. But Briar plus a different middle name might work even…

Bianca

Italian

"white"

Bianca, the livelier Italian and Shakespearean version of Blanche, has been chosen by many American parents since the 1990s, just as Blanca is a favorite in the Spanish-speaking community. Its…

Beatrice

Latin

"she who brings happiness; blessed"

Beatrice is back. Stored in the attic for almost a century, the lovely Beatrice with its long literary (Shakespeare, Dante) and royal history is being looked at with fresh eyes by parents seeking a…

Bridget

Anglicized variation of Gaelic Brighid

"strength or exalted one"

Bridget is the Anglicized form of Brigid, an Irish-Gaelic name that was derived from the word brígh , which means "strength." Bridget is the name of the most famous female saint of Ireland, who…

Bethany

Biblical place name and Hebrew

"house of figs"

Bethany is a lyrical name that still strikes many parents as a fresher, more substantial substitute for the overused Brittany/Brittney or the more antiquated Beth. In the New Testament, Bethany is…

Brittany

English name of the French region Bretagne, meaning 'from Briton'

Brittany first arrived on the US popularity list in 1971, and rapidly zoomed up the charts, in the Top 100 a decade later. By 1986 it had entered the Top 10, becoming the third most popular girls’…

Barbara

Greek

"foreign woman"

Barbara is back and among the fastest-rising names of recent years! Credit goes to 2023's breakout movie Barbie , which gave a new stylish feel to the classic Barbara and set it up to rank alongside…

Belle

Short form of Isabelle or French

"beautiful"

Belle has nothing but positive associations, from "belle of the ball" to "Southern belle" to the heroine of Disney's Beauty and the Beast . As if this weren't enough good things, Belle is also one of…

Beverly

English

"dweller near the beaver stream"

The remarkable success of the girls' name Everly makes a revival of the name Beverly seem possible. More commonly a masculine name in the 19th century, it began to be used for girls in the early…

Bernadette

German

"brave as a bear"

Although feminizations ending in "ette" are not particularly popular now, Bernadette is a pleasant, feminine, but strong name that doesn't feel prohibitively dated. And though strongly associated…