Dreamy Water Maiden

Severine

French, feminine variation of Severus; Latin

"stern"

This long-popular name in France sounds fresh, elegant and unusual here. Severine is the name of the most recent gorgeous James Bond Girl in the film Skyfall . Students of film history will associate…

Sireli

Estonian

May derive from Estonian "sirel", meaning "lilac flower".

Sonnet

English from Italian

"little song"

Could there be a more poetic name than Sonnet? Actor Forest Whitaker was inspired to choose it for his daughter. The word sonnet derives from the Italian sonetto , meaning 'little song.' And although…

Aveline

French from German

"desired; or island, water"

Aveline is a name that's long been an obscure cousin of more widely-used choices, but may come into its own riding the tail of the megapopular Ava, which may derive from the same root. Although…

Blossom

English

"to bloom"

Now that parents have picked virtually every name in the garden, from the common Rose to the captivating Zinnia, some are reconsidering the old, more generic names like Flora and Posy and Blossom —…

Calla

Greek

"beautiful"

Calla is a botanical name that is much more distinctive than popular Lily or similar Callie. Rarely heard today, it did appear in the popularity lists in the last decades of the nineteenth century.…

Callalily

English from Greek flower name

The Calla lily is a beautiful trumpet-shaped lily flower, usually white in color, which symbolizes purity and innocence. Its name derives from the Greek kallos , meaning "beauty". Calla lilies have…

Cleodora

Greek

"gift of glory"

The name of a nymph in Greek mythology, one of the prophetic Thriai, who divined the future by throwing pebbles. She was a lover of the sea god Poseidon. The name also belongs to a species of…

Danaë

Greek

A Greek goddess of music and poetry, Danaë has a novel yet familiar sound.

Daylily

English flower name

"daylily"

Pretty and unconventional floral option so called because their beautiful blooms generally last only a day.

Elinor

Spelling variation of Eleanor, English, French

A sleek, literary alternative to Eleanor, this stripped back form of Eleanor is a well-established spelling. It notably appears in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility , borne by Elinor Dashwood,…

Elva

Feminine form of Alf or anglicized form of Ailbhe, Danish, Icelandic, Irish

"elf; bright, light, white"

Elva is a multicultural choice, being both an anglicization of the Irish Ailbhe and an feminine form of the name Alf, meaning "elf". Popular in the US at the beginning of the 20th century, it…

Eudora

Greek

"generous gift"

Eudora is the name of five minor goddesses of Greek mythology and a major goddess (in the person of Pulitzer Prize-winning Eudora Welty) of modern American literature. Eudora is pleasant and…