User-created list
By augusta_lee · Updated May 2023
Across 62 pages
of 62
Latin
"lily"
An unusual flower name deriving from the Latin word for lily (lilium), this variant has always been popular in Scotland.
Scottish variation of Mary
"bitter"
Why does Mairi (rhymes with Harry) seem so much cooler than Mary? This Irish form of Mary was not used before the seventeenth century, as it was considered too sacred. The vocative case of the name,…
French color name
Mazarine is a deep blue color also used as a first name in honor of Cardinal Mazarin, a leader of France in the 17th century. As a first name, Mazarine is as charming as it is unusual.
Place-name, Sanskrit
"teacher, guide, ruler"
A Californian mountain name revered by healers and spiritualists, Shasta has a New Age, cowboy feel. The mountain takes its name from the Indigenous American tribe, the Shasta people - though this…
"from Sidon "
Sidonie is an appealing and chic French favorite that is starting to attract some American fans as a fresher alternative to Sydney. Also spelled Sidony, Sidonie was the birth name of the French…
Irish
"son of the beige one"
Although Maguire is such a prominent Irish surname —it ranks in the Top 40 in the Emerald Isle —this lively and cheerful family name has rarely been used as a first, unlike more familiar…
Greek
"the mother of all gods"
The Anatolian mother goddess Cybele had a place in Greek, Roman, Trojan, and Anatolian mythology. Today, she has special meaning as a symbol of gender nonconformity. In ancient Rome, Cybele's cult…
"lovable"
Amabel is an older name than Annabel and a lot more distinctive. Amabel was a very common name in the twelfth and thirteen centuries, then was revived during the nineteenth century British fad for…
Word name
Garland is fragrant and celebratory, and also has a celebrity-tribute tie to the star of The Wizard of Oz .
French
"warhorse"
Destry rides again, this time as a Western flavored baby name. Derived from the French surname Destrier, from an Anglo-Norman word meaning "warhorse", this rugged name was popularized by the 1930…
"of the palace"
This title of honor given to Charlemagne's twelve best knights would be prized as a name by most sword-loving little boys.
English
"dweller at the old cottage"
Alcott evokes shades of nineteenth-century New England, and memories of the author of the books Little Women and Little Men . Louisa May Alcott was the daughter of Amos Bronson Alcott, noted…
French, diminutive of Hugh
Hugh plus.
Latin, female variation of Nicasio
"victorious"
An interesting and unusual member of the "Nic" family--far more distinctive than NICOLE or NICOLA.
Celtic
"white-shouldered one"
More unusual than Fiona and more user-friendly than Fionnuala, the engaging Scottish Fenella, has been scarcely heard in this country. Fenella first became known outside of Ireland when Sir Walter…
English surname
"crane"
This elegant surname has great potential to turn into an unusual first name, especially with its literary associations to both Stephen and Hart Crane. Crane is a surname that originated for a tall…
"from Lancey"
This is an energetic dance of an Irish surname, great for both genders. Could also be spelled Delancy.
Literary name, Greek
"angel"
If you want to move beyond Maya, you might consider this distinctive last name of poet Maya Angelou. Born Marguerite Annie Johnson, Angelou was given the nickname Maya by her brother and adopted…
Greek mythological name, meaning unknown
Thisbe, the name of a beautiful but tragic lover in mythology, is lively and cute -- in a slightly thistly, prickly way. Ovid retold the story of Thisbe and Pyramus, young lovers in ancient Babylon…
Scandinavian
"new victory"
Signy — also spelled Signe — would make another distinctively offbeat alternative to Sydney. Signy appears in Norse mythology as the twin sister of Sigmund.
