User-created list
By icequeenpurple · Updated May 2023
Across 5 pages
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Scottish, from French
"lives by the woods"
CEO name.
Italian diminutive of Laura
"bay laurel"
The first syllable of Laura in Italian rhymes with now, so Lauretta does not really sound like the decidedly midcentury Loretta thought most English speakers will pronounce it that way. Still, this…
Annetta is a feminine name that serves as a diminutive form of Anna, which originates from the Hebrew name Hannah, meaning 'grace' or 'favor.' This charming variation emerged in Italian and has…
Greek botanical name
Long in our category of so-far-out-it-will-always-be-out category, once seen as a gum-cracking 1940's telephone operator, we think it's time to reassess Myrtle, and look at is as a nature name, a…
Swedish and Danish
"Thor's temple; Thor's strength"
German
"small brook"
Rilla dropped out of the US Top 1000 in 1915, but it's starting to feel like an intriguing possibility again in this age of short, sweet, a-ending names for girls. It is traditionally a short form…
Norse
"little branch"
Spurgeon entered the mainstream name lexicon when it was chosen for their son by Ben Seward and wife Jessa Duggar, from the US reality show 19 Kids and Counting starring their large family. Spurgeon…
Medieval variation of Esther, Persian
"star"
The disgraced heroine of The Scarlet Letter 's name, after long neglect, just might have a chance at revival, following in the wake of sister-name Esther. We've characterized her elsewhere as an…
Greek
"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…
Diminutive of James or Jeremiah
This name of the ten-year-old boy in the much loved and acclaimed modern classic To Kill a Mockingbird could find favor along with that of the character's sister, Scout.
Diminutive of Albert, Bertram etc
Long a royal nickname in England, it's coming back there along with Archie and Alfie. British singer Kate Bush calls her little boy Bertie.
Hebrew
"God has judged"
A bit too elephantine for a modern child.
English and Scottish variation of Ludwig
"famous warrior"
Euro-cool. Heard more in Scotland than in England or the US, Ludovic Lesly is a character in the Sir Walter Scott novel Quentin Durward and Sir Ludovic Kennedy was a noted Scottish broadcaster and…
Surname name
Moody would work great as the name of Snow White's lost eighth dwarf friend, but we can't recommend it as a first name IRL. It was the last name of Harry Potter character Mad-Eye Moody, played by…
English
"moor, meadow clearing"
Gently pleasant English family name long associated with 60-Minuteman Morley Safer.
Perceval is a masculine name with ancient Arthurian roots, originating from Welsh mythology and medieval romance literature. It comes from Old French "Perceval" or Welsh "Peredur," though its exact…
