User-created list
By alexrusty · Updated May 2023
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Safia is a feminine name with Arabic origins, meaning 'pure' or 'clear.' It's a variant of the name Safiya (or Safiyyah), which has significant historical importance in Islamic tradition as it was…
Elaboration of Nova, Latin
"new"
Novalie combines the uber stylish and starry Nova with the trendy -lie ending, making it even more modern sounding than it was before. Novalee appeared on the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2016,…
Latin
"stars"
A starry-eyed, intergalactic name, far rarer than Stella or Esther. It's attached both to a comic book character and to Princess Astra on "Doctor Who".
German, French
"prosperous in battle"
Ottilie is trending in the UK, where the pronounced T helps the name sound pretty and delicate, rather like Amelie and Elodie. Ottilie is less popular in the US, where many Americans pronounce it as…
French from Latin
"coral"
Coralie is a French name not often heard here, though she's gaining some recognition via Neil Gaiman's similar sounding spooky and lovely children's book, Coraline . Other literary appearances:…
Literary surname and shortened form of Augustine, Latin
"great, magnificent"
While Austin is a popular boys' name, this spelling, honoring novelist Jane, nudges the name toward gender-neutral, chosen last year for 67 baby boys and 57 girls.
Greek
"most beautiful"
Calista Flockhart spotlighted this lovely Greek name that has a long future in the English-speaking world. Kallista is another spelling; Calixta and Calixto are related.
French variation of Aurelia, Latin
"the golden one"
Aurelie is the delicate French variation of Aurelia, one of the most improbable popular names of recent years. Both versions of the name are lovely, but it might be difficult to insist that Americans…
English bird name
Lark is getting some new and well-deserved attention as a post-Robin and Raven bird name. Although it was first recorded as a name in the 1830's, it has never appeared on the Social Security list.…
Color name
Grey is the more common spelling in Britain and Australia. This color name has a softness and ambiguity which makes it equally lovely for a boy or a girl.
Scottish
"from the town of St. Clair"
The most famous Sinclair was the (male) writer Lewis, but these days the name works at least as well for a girl.
Literary name, variation of Harriet
A pretty, dainty name for one of the little characters in the children's book series The Borrowers . It was the basis for a later Studio Ghible animated film, The Secret World of Arrietty . While the…
Latinate variation of Cleo, Greek
"glory"
An attractive and unusual name that may be a variation of Cleo, Clea was possibly invented by Lawrence Durrell for a character in his Alexandria Quartet . Actress Clea DuVall is one noted bearer of…
French from German
"healthy; wide"
Heloise is an ancient name related to sleek, peppy classic Eloise. Both ultimately derive from the Germanic name Helewidis, which became Helewis in medieval England. In the twelfth century, the name…
German
"horse protection"
This lovely, quintessentially British appellation, also spelled Rosamond, is the name of a legendary twelfth-century beauty. Rare on these shores, it is more than worthy of importation. There was a…
English
"citizen of Rome"
Originally a surname deriving from the Roman twin Romulus, this attractive name was introduced to the English-speaking world as a first name by painter Augustus John who used it for his son. Romilly…
"from the land by the sea"
An old-man name that sounds cute when used for a little girl, and is starting to seem cool again for boys too. For girls, it might be associated with Mina Murray (later, Mina Harker) from Bram…
English word, Old English
"an inlet of the sea where the land curves inward; berry"
One of the most usable of the pleasant, newly adopted nature/water names (like Lake and Ocean), especially in middle position. It's gentle, slightly whimsical, but grounded by its similarity to May…
Feminine short form of David or short form of Octavia
Tavi has been catapulted into the spotlight by teenage fashion blogger Tavi Gevinson. This cute name, previously not on anyone's scope, could be a way to honor an ancestral David or a short form of…
"Persian woman"
Parents seeking a distinctive New Testament name might consider this one. Adopted by some Puritans in the seventeenth century, Persis was used in the William Dean Howells novel The Rise of Silas…
