Arden, the name of the magical forest in Shakespeare's As You Like It, is a stylish A name with a strong, straightforward image. Another reason to love Arden: its similarity to "ardent." Arden is solidly unisex, with the current gender distribution running about 60 percent girls and 40 percent boys.

 A locational surname name deriving from several places in England, there are multiple legitimate derivations for this name. One is from Old English earn "eagle" + denu "valley", while another is from the Celtic ard meaning "high".

 As a girls' name, Arden has been flirting with the bottom of the Top 1000 in recent years, hopping on and off the US list. A solid Nameberry favorite, this name should begin climbing more steadily.

 Arden is more familiar as a surname, as in cosmetics entrepreneur Elizabeth and actress Eve, and the narrative poem by Tennyson, Enoch Arden. Shakespeare's mother was Mary Arden.

Arden

One of the designer <a href="https://nameberry.com">baby names</a> -- Chanel and Gucci are others -- that have appeared in this era of branding everything from your purse to your offspring.

Armani

Aven

Blakely, along with Blakeley, Blakelee and Blakeleigh, is one of the post-Ashley surname names that end with the lee sound so stylish today. Reality stars Trista and Ryan Sutter named their daughter Blakesley. These surname-names are among the most stylish <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/501/english-names-for-girls">English names for girls</a>.

Blakely

Berkley 

Cute but slight mix of stylish sounds Cam and Bree, chosen by Rick Schroder for his daughter. 

Cambrie

This unisex name, the seventh most popular surname in Scotland, can make a more unusual Cameron alternative. It is represented on the girls' side by TV news correspondent Campbell Brown, for whom it was a family name, Brown was born Alma Dale Campbell, Alma Dale being her grandmother's name,and Campbell her mother's maiden name.
 Authors Nicholas Sparks and Jodi Picoult have both created female characters named Campbell.
 As a surname, Campbell is connected to philosopher-writer Joseph, singer Glen, actress Neve, model Naomi, GB Shaw muse Mrs. Patrick, and Andy Warhol's soup cans.

Campbell

Charleston

Copeland

Daveney 

Effie is the old-fashioned short form for Euphemia. It shares a vintage charm with Hattie and Letty although is much rarer than either. Effie is a character in The Hunger Games and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

Effie

Ellis, a surname used sparingly as a first in the Wallace/Morris period, sounds new now for girls, as a gender-neutral alternative to Ella or Alice. It debuted in the US Top 1000 for girls in 2015.-- Ellis has always been in the Top 1000 for boys -- and seems to be headed straight up. One of the most popular gender-neutral names, currently there are two baby boys named Ellis for every girl. Ellis Bell was the name chosen by Emily Bronte as her male pseudonym, and Ellis Grey was the mother of Dr. Meredith Grey on Grey's Anatomy.

Ellis

Brooke Shields chose this name for her younger daughter.  It's one of the original androgynous movie star names, precursor to Drew and Glenn and Cameron, borne by Greer Garson.

Grier

Gracen

You might think of Harper as the hottest name of the last decade, jumping from obscurity to the Top 10, where it remained until last year.
 
Victoria and David Beckham's choice of Harper for their youngest child and only daughter in 2011 did much to catapult the name to stardom. Some reports say Harper was named after a character on Disney's Wizards of Waverly Place, her brother's favorite show, while other say she was named after Harper Lee, author of To Kill A Mockingbird, her mom's favorite book.
 
Those two influences definitely helped propel Harper up the popularity list in general. Plus Harper is a member of the trendy group of occupational surnames turned first names for both genders, including Taylor, Parker, Mason, and Skylar.
 
Harper has been a shooting star in the celebrisphere, chosen first by Ali Wentworth and George Stephanopoulis, followed by Lisa Marie Presley, David Spade, Dave Grohl, Martie Maguire, Tiffani Thiessen, Bill Hader and Neil Patrick Harris. Singer Paul Simon used it for his son more than 50 years ago.
 
While Harper was used near-exclusively for boys in the 1800s and remains technically unisex, in reality it's used today overwhelmingly for girls. More than 8000 baby girls were named Harper in the US last year, versus only 138 baby boys.

Harper

Hollis is a surname-name used quietly for both genders. At last count, it was given to 199 baby boys and 163 baby girls in the US, a significant rise for both genders over the last handful of years. It has notable connections for both genders: Hollis Thompson is a professional (male) basketball player, while Hollis is an outsized favorite for girls in South Carolina, where Pete Hollis was a community folk hero. On the girls' side, it makes Holly more buttoned-up and distinctive

Hollis

Haddie

Euphonious and long stylish in England, India was one of the fastest-rising names on the 2013 list, after jumping 240 spots back into the Top 1000.
 
Gorgeous as it may be, the usage of India as a name has distinctly imperial roots, making it a loaded (and ill-advised) choice for someone without Indian heritage.
 
India was a character in Gone with the Wind, the sister of Ashley Wilkes, and more recently was picked for the daughters of singer Sarah McLachlan, actress Heather Thomas, and Avenger Chris Hemsworth.
 
India Hicks is a high-profile ex-model with ties to the royal family, and the mother of a girl called Domino. Singer India.Arie was born India Arie — without the period.

India

Although this is a legitimate name, most people would associate it with a line of Volkswagens -- you'd be better off choosing a Mercedes. 

Jetta

Kensington

Though it sounds like a chopped-off variation of Olivia, which means olive, the distinctively attractive Livia has been an independent name since the days of the ancient Romans, when it belonged to Livia Drusilla—the powerful wife of the Emperor Augustus—and is still commonly heard in modern Italy. 
 Livia was a literary favorite from the sixteenth century, appearing in the plays of John Fletcher and Thomas Middleton, and playing a minor role in Romeo and Juliet. Anna Livia Plurabelle is the name of a character in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake.
 Livia entered the US Top 1000 in 2004 but unlike its popular sister Olivia, it's never risen that high in the ranks. But Livia is a Top 100 girls' name in many other countries, including France, the Netherlands, Brazil, Sweden, Switzerland, and Austria.

Livia

Lennox

Maude, also spelled Maud, is a lacy, mauve-tinted name that was wildly popular a hundred years ago, but has been rarely heard in the past fifty. Some stylish parents are starting to choose it again, especially as a middle. 
 
Maude's early popularity was influenced by the Tennyson poem that included the oft-quoted line, "Come into the garden, Maude." Then, in the 1970s, along came the sitcom Maude, featuring the vociferous and opinionated character Maude Finlay, putting a very different spin on the name. But enough decades have now passed for the name to have settled back into its soft, sweet pastel image.
 
Parents today are more likely to associate the name with young actress Maude Apatow, who rose to fame in HBO's Euphoria. She may be the catalyst needed to finally popularize her name again.
 
The Maud spelling has British royal associations via the daughter of Edward VII, who later became Queen of Norway; Maud Gonne was a famous Irish political activist.

Maude

Nahla is a lovely name chosen by Halle Berry for her daughter.  Not to be confused with the Disneyfied Nala.

Nahla

Oakley, with its nature name roots and its Annie Oakley charm, is a hot name for both genders but more than twice as popular for girls. This name made it into the Top 1000 for the first time in 2013, one of only four <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/o">girl names starting with O</a> to rank that high. A decade letter, it's aiming for the Top 100.

Oakley is rising trough the ranks for both genders, though it is given to more than twice as many girls as boys. It's also popular in other English-speaking countries as well as for dogs.

Oak variations Oaklynn, Oaklyn, and Oaklee are also popular for girls, while Oakes is an up-and-coming variation used mostly for boys.

Oakley

Adorable name that's fashionable and keeps gaining momentum. Remi entered the US Top 1000 in 2013 and is now approaching the Top 100. The Remi spelling is more popular for girls, while Remy is more popular for boys, both both spellings are in the Top 1000 for both genders. That's a remarkable success story for a name that, in the late 1900s, was given to only a handful of babies in the US.

Remi

Stylish, gentle, and rustic at the same time, Rowan is a name that falls into various categories. Unisex and cool, mystical and woodsy, with the feel of both Rose and Riley, Rowan is a fresh but familiar choice.
 
The name has multiple origins, possibly deriving from the Irish Ruadhán, meaning “little redhead”, or from the names Rowena and Rhonwen, meaning “famous friend” and “white spear.” 
Alternatively, it might be taken from the rowan tree, a red-berried tree whose name derives from Old Norse and means “to redden.” In folklore and mythology, rowan trees are seen as a symbol of protection and of life, used to ward off evil. 
Rowan was an obscure name in the US before Brooke Shields chose it for her daughter in 2003. The name entered the US Top 1000 the same year and it’s been climbing in popularity ever since. Now, over 1000 girls are called Rowan every year, meaning for every 3 boys named Rowan, there’s 1 girl. 
Notable namesakes include the actress and activist, Rowan Blanchard, and Rowan Ellis, an author and Youtuber who makes video essays. In fiction, Rowan Mayfair is a powerful witch in Anne Rice’s novel The Witching Hour and Rowan Love is the quirky and creative older sister in Karen McCombie’s Ally’s World series.

Rowan

Saylor jumped into the Top 1000 in 2013 and is given to three times as many girls as the Sailor version. That may be because Saylor feels more like a name and less like an occupation or a word. Its spelling near-echoes the hugely popular Taylor, plus Saylor is a traditional surname in its own right. Recorded in the medieval times in Germany, it's related to the word seil which means rope and was an occupational name for a ropemaker, which also relates to sailor.

Saylor

Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin's daughter Ireland opened up the map for names like Scotland, and now that it's been chosen by Kourtney Kardashian for her daughter Penelope's middle name -- in honor of daddy Scott Disick -- Scotland is sure to appear on more birth certificates.  Can Scotlyn be far behind?

Scotland

A sweet, slightly old-school nickname name with a cheerful image. Surprisingly, Scottie is now used for baby girls in the US more than 80% of the time. Scottie entered the Top 1000 for the first time in 2022, reflecting America's current love for grandpa names for girls, like Frankie, Ozzie, and Lenny.
 
F. Scott Fitzgerald's daughter, Frances Scott Fitzgerald, was known as Scottie.

Scottie

Sibella

Zara has multiple origins, but most notably is a variation of Zahrah, a name derived from the Arabic zahrah, meaning "blooming flower." Zara can also be a diminutive of the Bulgarian name Zaharina, a feminine form of the Hebrew Zechariah. Today, Zara is heavily associated with the Spanish fast-fashion empire of the same name.
 
Zara is an evocative name, often used in early movies and novels for a sultry character from the East — Greta Garbo played one in the 1932 film As You Desire Me. Britain's Princess Anne defied royal convention by giving her daughter the Arabic name in 1981, thus bestowing on Zara instant upper-class status.
 One of the first uses of Zara was by William Congreve in his 1697 play The Mourning Bride as the name of an African queen. Zara, Priestess of the Golden Flame, also was a Wonder Woman comic book villain.
 Zara can also be spelled Zarah or Zahra, as Chris Rock did for his daughter. The related Zahara is the name of Brad and Angelina's oldest daughter.
 
Possible downside:the Zara clothing stores now in many malls.

Zara

GraceCampbell's list "Cool But Unique Names" of 32 great name ideas: Arden - Zara!