Nature, Nature Everywhere

Violet

English from Latin

"purple"

Violet is soft and sweet, yet with a vivacious edge. Today, Violet is the top flower name for girls, outranking Lily and Iris in the Top 100, and the most popular color name for girls, pulling ahead…

Hazel

English

"the hazelnut tree"

Hazel has a pleasantly hazy, brownish-green-eyed, old-fashioned image that more and more parents are choosing to share. Former Old Lady name Hazel reentered the popularity lists in 1998 and now is…

Ivy

Botanical name

The quirky, offbeat and energetic botanical name Ivy is enjoying a deserved revival, propelled even higher by its choice by high-profile parents Beyonce and Jay-Z for daughter Blue Ivy. Ivy is also…

Willow

English nature name

"willow tree"

An ancient tree that figures in literature from Shakespeare to Harry Potter and is believed to possess magical powers, Willow is a lovely name, as graceful as its inspiration. Willow's use as a given…

Iris

Flower name; Greek

"rainbow"

Iris has so much going for it. It's a fashionable flower name. It's a mythological name, from the Greek goddess of the rainbow. And it's a classic name, always ranking in the girls' Top 1000 but now…

Magnolia

Flower name, from French surname

"Magnol's flower"

Magnolia, a sweet-smelling Southern belle of a name made famous via the iconic Edna Ferber novel and musical Showboat , is one of the latest wave of botanical names, along with unexpected blossoms…

June

Latin

"young"

June, a sweetly old-fashioned month name derived from the goddess Juno, was long locked in a time capsule with June Allyson (born Ella) and June Cleaver, but is rising again especially as a middle…

Dahlia

Flower name, from Swedish surname

"Dahl's flower"

One of the flower names, used occasionally in Britain (where it's pronounced DAY-lee-a). It seems to have recovered from what was perceived as a slightly affected la-di-dah air. The flower was named…

Rosemary

Latin or English

"dew of the sea, or rosemary (herb)"

Despite appearances, Rosemary is not a "smoosh" name, not even a traditional one. The name derives from two Latin terms "Ros" meaning dew and Marinus meaning of the sea. The plant was termed dew of…

Azalea

English

"azalea, a flower"

Azalea is one of the fresher flower names, along with Zinnia and Lilac, that are new to the name bouquet — in fact, it entered the Social Security list for the first time in 2012. So if Lily and Rose…

Meadow

Nature name

Meadow's upward popularity trajectory certainly suggests that the name has transcended its connection to The Sopranos .. In the US, more than 750 baby girls were named Meadow last year, a number we…

Zinnia

Flower name, from German surname

"Zinn's flower"

Zinnia is an unusual floral choice with a bit more edge and energy than most and beginning to find its way onto namers' wish lists of botanical possibilities. Named after the 18th-century German…

Evening

Day name

Though this feels like a new invention, people have used day names such as Morning and Afternoon for centuries -- and so why not Evening too? It's a lovely word with an evocative meaning and makes a…

Jewel

Word name

Just like Flora is for botanicals, Jewel is the generic gemstone name, not used much since the early twentieth century, when it was seen as a symbol of how precious a daughter could be. The French…

Sparrow

Nature name

"sparrow, a bird"

With related choices such as Lark and Phoenix gaining popularity, why not Sparrow? Though it's usually thought of as a female name, Nicole Richie and Joel Madden chose it for their son.

Prairie

English nature name

"prairie"

Unspecific place name with a wonderfully wide-open, spacious, western feel; used for a character in Thomas Pynchon's novel Vineland . Prairie is derived from the Old French word praierie , which…