pretty names

Missy

English, diminutive of Melissa

A name that works until your daughter is, say, six.

Lorraine

French

"from the province of Lorraine"

Sweet Lorraine might just be old enough to be ripe for reconsideration. This French place name has moved in and out of fashion in the few hundred years it's been used as a girls' first name, somewhat…

Doris

Greek

"gift of the ocean"

Doris had long been on our so-far-out-it-will-always-be-out-for-babies list, and seemed to be written there in indelible ink. But there are signs of a sea change, that Doris could profit from the…

Rosalyn

Variation of Rosalind

True Blood may be the reason that variation Rosalyn has retained some popularity while the original Rosalind still languishes. Moderately popular in the middle of the last century, Rosalyn may…

Linda

Spanish, Portuguese and Italian

"pretty"

Linda will live forever in baby name history for toppling Mary from its four hundred year reign as Number 1. Queen of Names in 1947, Linda has fallen even further in favor than Mary today. Still,…

Shirley

English

"bright meadow"

Shirley Temple almost single-handedly lifted the gloom of the Great Depression, and in tribute (and perhaps wishing for a similarly curly-headed, dimpled darling of their own), thousands of parents…

Brenda

Scottish

"blade of a sword"

First the heroine of Sir Walter Scott's 1822 novel The Pirate , then a glamorous 1940s debutante, then the troubled twin on Beverly Hills 90210, and now fading in favor of more modern Brenna, Briana,…

Patsy

English, diminutive of Patricia

"noble, patrician"

This sassy, spunky name was used for the mostly Irish jump-roping pigtailed girls of the thirties and forties -- and some Irish and Italian boys as well. Its most noted bearer was iconic country…

Jennie

Diminutive of Janet, Jane, Jean, and Jennifer

Long before the Jennifer Era, Jennie was a fashionable pet form of several names, and was also used independently -- in 1875 it was in the Top 20. Jennie was replaced by the Jenny spelling in the…

Rosalind

Latin

"soft horse or pretty rose"

Rosalind has a distinguished literary history – used and popularized by Edmund Spenser and Shakespeare via one of his most charming heroines, in As You Like It . Along with a bouquet of other Rose…

Sally

Diminutive of Sarah

"princess"

Sally is a cheerful, fresh-faced girl-next-door name that was originally a nickname for Sarah, but has long been used independently. Sally was popular in the eighteenth century and then again from…

Shannon

Irish

"old and wise"

Irish place-name -- it's a river, a town, and an airport -- once popular but now supplanted by such newer immigrants as Saoirse and Seanan.

Christine

French variation of Christina

"Christian"

Christine was the dominant feminine variation of Christopher forty or fifty years ago, when French E -endings were preferred over A s; it was a Top 20 name for several years, from 1966 to 1974. But…

Cathy

English diminutive of Catherine, Greek

"pure"

One of the most popular nicknames of the fifties and sixties — and who could forget the romantic heroine of "Wuthering Heights"? — now largely ignored in favor of Cate or Kate.

Sister

English

"a female who has one or both parents in common with another"

Sister is an old-timey nickname-name for girls, ranking in the Top 1000 as a proper name for girls until the beginning of the 20th century. But more often, Sister was used as a nickname in the truest…

Mandy

Diminutive of Amanda, Latin

"she must be loved"

A seventies favorite, Mandy once appeared in the US Top 100, joined by the likes of Brandi, Kristy, Nancy, Lori, and Misty. By the mid-2000s, it had fallen out of favor, and while long form Amanda…

Lyndsey

See LINDSEY.

Sharon

Hebrew

"a plain"

This Old Testament place name was in the Top 10 fifty years ago, but now Sharon, along with sound-alike Karen, have fallen out of favor.

Pansy

English flower name from French

"thought"

Pansy is an early floral name that lost credibility when it became a derogatory slang term for gay people. Better these days: Posy or Poppy.