Abilene is a rarely used place name, mentioned as such in the New Testament, that combines the cowboy spunk of the Texas city with the midwestern morality of the Kansas town where Dwight D. Eisenhower spent his boyhood. Abilene is a much more untrodden path to the nickname Abbie/Abbie than the Top 10 Abigail.
 In 1857, Eliza Hersey named the frontier village of Abilene, Kansas after a vast plain described in Luke's gospel.
 Abilene is the title of a Sheryl Crow song, and the book The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate Dicamillo features a sweet character named Abilene.

Abilene

Adelaide is now heading straight uphill on the coattails of such newly popular sisters as Ava, Ada, and Audrey, and in the company of Adeline and Amelia. It was chosen by actress Katherine Heigl for the name of her second daughter.
 Adelaide gained fame as the noble German princess who married the British King William IV in 1830 and became known as "Good Queen Adelaide," inspiring the name of the Australian city and a craze for her name. Earlier, St. Adelaide was married to Otto the Great and became Empress of the Holy Roman Empire, described as "a marvel of beauty and goodness."
 When Aussie actress Rachel Griffiths (also mother of son Banjo) chose Adelaide for her daughter, she said she'd been inspired by the city, Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, and the Disney character in The Aristocats. Adelaide can also be found in works by Thomas Hardy and Agatha Christie.

Adelaide

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

Bridget is the Anglicized form of Brigid, an Irish-Gaelic name that was derived from the word brígh, which means "strength." 
Bridget is the name of the most famous female saint of Ireland, who became the patroness of her country, as well as patron saint of scholars, poets and healers. Because of her sanctity, the name did not come into common use in Ireland until the seventeenth century, after which it became wildly popular. Bridget eventually came to be used as a pejorative name for an Irishwoman; Irish maids in the early 20th century US were derogatorily called "the Bridgets."
 
One of the earliest <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/509/irish-names-for-girls">Irish names for girls</a> to immigrate to the USA, Bridget, the most familiar form of the name of the Celtic goddess of wisdom, is still used by traditionalists but also carries some modern spark and a great meaning. Bridget is one of the exclusive group of <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/96/girl-names-that-mean-brave-or-powerful">girl names that mean strong, brave, or powerful</a>.
 
According to Irish myth, there were three sister goddesses named Brigid: the goddess of poetry, the goddess of healing, and the goddess of agriculture.
Most prominent Bridgets today are actresses Fonda and Moynahan, op artist Bridget Riley, and the fictional hapless Bridget Jones—she and her diary the protagonist of four books, three movies, and even a musical.
 
Irish variants include Brighid, Brigid (as in the devious character in The Maltese Falcon), Bridie, Biddy, Brid and Bedelia.

Bridget

At one time just the sound of the name Camille could start people coughing, recalling the tragic Lady of the Camellias, the heroine played by Greta Garbo in the vintage film based on a Dumas story, but that image has faded, replaced by a sleek, chic, highly attractive one. 
 Among its namesakes are Camille Claudel, a French sculptor and Camille Paglia, a feminist writer and critic. Princess Stephanie of Monaco is the mother of a Camille, and it is the middle name of both Nicole Richie and Willow Smith.
 Camille is a unisex name in France, where distinguished male bearers include the composer Saint-Saens and the painter Pissarro.

Camille

Clarissa, the daintier version of Claire, has a long literary history of its own, having been featured in the novels of Samuel Richardson, Charles Dickens, and Virginia Woolf—Clarissa was the title character of Mrs. Dalloway—not to mention the 1990s teen sitcom, Clarissa Explains it All. 
 Clarissa is a name definitely worth considering as an alternative to the overused Vanessa and Melissa. Appealing diminutives are Clarry and Claris.
 Red Cross founder Clara Barton was born Clarissa.

Clarissa

Cora is a lovely, old-fashioned girls' that has been recently rejuvenated by its contemporary-feeling simplicity. In fact, Cora seemed headed straight for the top of the popularity list when the coronavirus pandemic somewhat weakened its appeal.
 
Though she has never been completely out of favor, Cora has had her ups and downs. A Top 20 name in the 1880's, she had sunk to Number 876 in 1988 before reversing course yet again. A more recent inspiration is the appealing American-born Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham on Downton Abbey. 
 
In classical mythology, Cora—or Kore—was a euphemistic name of Persephone, goddess of fertility and the underworld. Kore was the name used when referencing her identity as the goddess of Spring, while Persephone referred to her role as queen of the Underworld. 
 
Cora gained popularity as a given name after James Fenimore Cooper used it as the name of his heroine, Cora Munro, in his 1826 novel The Last of the Mohicans. 
 
While a complete name unto itself, some parents who love Cora may want to use it as a short form for such names as Cordelia or Coraline. Cora's fashionable sisters include Clara, Nora, Corinne, Corinna and Coralie.

Cora

Delicate ballerina name with grace, charm, and heft courtesy of Jane Austen's Mr. 

Darcy

This is an energetic dance of an Irish surname, great for both genders. Could also be spelled Delancy.

Delancey

Emmeline is an Emma relative and Emily cousin that is destined for greater use in the wake of the megapopularity of those two names. A recommended Nameberry fave, Emmeline hopped onto the US Top 1000 in 2014 for the first time ever. While it is genuinely an old name, it was rarely used a century ago; only 17 baby girls were named Emmeline in 1915, the same number as were named Ernie!
 A popular medieval name, Emmeline was introduced to Britain by the Normans. It appeared as a character in Uncle Tom's Cabin, and is famous in Britain as the name of the illustrious suffragette, Emmeline Pankhurst. Way back in 1980, it was the name of young Brooke Shields's innocent character in The Blue Lagoon. More recently, Emmeline Vance was a witch in the Harry Potter series.
 Christian Bale has a daughter named Emmeline.

Emmeline

Eva is a simple, classic <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/489/hebrew-names-for-girls">Hebrew name for girls</a> that recently slipped out of the US Top 100 for the first time in more than a decade. Pronounced either like her more popular sister Ava or less popular sister Eve, Eva is one of the elite group of <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/607/girl-names-that-mean-life">girl names that mean life</a>.
 
Eva is found in many different languages as a variation of Eve—the Old Testament name recognizable as the first woman in Abrahamic religions. Short forms of the name include Evie and Evita. The diminutive Evita is still strongly associated with Evita Peron, wife of the Argentine President Juan Peron.
 The 1852 publication of Uncle Tom's Cabin, the bestselling novel of the nineteenth century, whose tragic figure Little Eva (short for Evangeline) made an enormous impression on the Victorian reading public, propelled the name to popularity.
 Some well known Evas include actresses Evas Marie Saint, Gabor, Green, Longoria and Mendes, sculptor Eva Hesse, singer Little Eva, and model Eva Herzigova
 Eva is a highly popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/girls-names">girls’ name</a> throughout the Western World, ranking in the Top 100 of most English-speaking countries along with a wide range of European nations, from Spain and Italy to France and Germany to Scandinavia. This makes Eva one of the most internationally versatile names today.

Evelyn derives from the French feminine given name Aveline, which is from an obscure Germanic root which may mean "desired, wished for" or "water, island". The name Aveline was brought over to England by the Normans, but it first became popular as a masculine name – a transferred use of the surname Evelyn, which comes from the same source. Variations include Evaline, Evalyn, Evelin, and Eveline.
 
After decades of disuse, soft and feminine Evelyn has returned to the baby name stage in a huge way. It reached the Top 10 for the first time in 2017. Evelyn has now surpassed its former heights, joining a legion of contemporary little Evas, Avas, Eves, Evies, and Evelines. All this despite having returned to the Top 40 for the first time since 1939 less than a decade ago.
 
Formerly a predominantly masculine name, its most famous bearer is writer Evelyn (EEV-lin) Waugh. (Trivia note: Evelyn Waugh was married to a woman named Evelyn, and they were known as 'He-velyn" and "She-velyn'.) Its quiet persona was reversed with the character Evelyn Salt, played by Angelina Jolie. Bruce Willis chose it for his fifth daughter and Carey Mulligan used it for hers.

Evelyn

Georgia is so rich, lush and luscious, it's almost irresistible. Georgia's now a rising star among the feminizations of George, helped by associations with the southern state (named for British King George II) and painter Georgia O'Keeffe, with the Ray Charles song "Georgia On My Mind" or maybe "Sweet Georgia Brown" playing in the background. 

 Georgia is in fact a double place name, also belonging to an ex-Soviet state famous for the ancient monastery Vardzia and its rich culinary and wine-growing culture.

 Georgia has been chosen for their daughters by Harry Connick, Jr., Hope Davis, Amy Ryan, Zac Brown, Rebecca Gayheart and Eric Dane, and Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy.

Georgia

One spelling variation that's more popular than the original, this somewhat old-fashioned name might be in honor of poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the first African-American to win a Pulitzer prize for poetry, or may be a way to get to the modern short form Gwen.
 In the Oscar Wilde play, the character's name is spelled the traditional Welsh way, Gwendolen, as it was for one of the principal characters in George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, and Gwendolen was also Merlin's wife in Arthurian legend.

Gwendolyn

Harriet has long been considered a stylish, upscale name in England, but it's still waiting to be revived in the US—though some parents seeking a solid, serious semi-classic are beginning to consider it. 
 Distinguished namesakes include Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of the influential Uncle Tom's Cabin; Harriet Tubman (born Araminta), the famed abolitionist; and in pop culture, Harriet Hilliard Nelson, of Ozzie & Harriet TV fame. Many will associate it with the protagonist of the childhood classic Harriet the Spy. Harriet has appeared in other books ranging from Jane Austen's Emma to Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. 
 Harriet, a Top 100 name at the turn of the last century, hasn't appeared on the list since 1970. On the other hand, it is currently Number 61 in England and Wales.
 Cutesy nicknames for Harriet include Hattie, Hetty, and Hatsy. A related idea: Henrietta.

Harriet

Helena is one of those classic names that just misses making the US Top 1000 girl names for its entire history, falling off for a single year in 1992. Since then it's been drifting lazily up the charts, and makes a perfect choice if you want a name that both fits in and stands out.
An airier and more elegant version of Helen, Helena was a favorite of Shakespeare, who used it in both All's Well That Ends Well and A Midsummer's Night Dream. 

Historically, Helena was the mother of Constantine the Great (and, supposedly, the daughter of Old King Cole), who became a fourth century saint--Evelyn Waugh wrote his only historical novel, Helena, based on her story.
 British star Helena Bonham Carter and Danish model Helena Christensen have done much to keep the name alive, and it is also remembered via beauty mogul Helena Rubinstein. Helena is also the title of a song by the group My Chemical Romance.
 Helena is a recommended <a href="https://nameberry.com/girls-names">girls' name</a> for those who find the classic version a bit bland.
 HELL-ehn-a is the best modern pronunciation for Helena, but hell-AYN-a or even hell-EEN-a work too.

Helena

Ivory was last popular a hundred years ago. In 2013, it finally began to regain some momentum in the female rankings, reentering the Top 1000.
 A word of caution, however—people may associate this name with illegal poaching of elephants and the ivory trade. Or, more prosaically, the popular brand of soap.

Ivory

Jacqueline originated as a feminine form of Jacques, the French variation of James, and therefore Jacob. Jacob was ultimately derived from the Hebrew name Ya’aqov, and gets its meaning, "supplanter" from the story of Jacob supplanting his brother Esau as the first-born son in the Bible. Jacqueline was first used in France in the Middle Ages.
 
To most Americans, the French Jacqueline still recalls the Kennedy era and its elegant First Lady, although it's lost a good measure of its glamorous image and Gallic gloss. Jacqueline and Jackie peaked as names in 1961, the age of Camelot, reaching a high of Number 37. 
 The name was imported into England by a French sister-in-law of Henry V (known as Dame Jack) and had reached the Top 50 in this country by the 1920s. It's one of those names with a bunch of different spellings, the most common of which is Jacqueline.
 Barbara Walters named her only child Jacqueline.

Jacqueline

Jayne

Josephine, with its large measure of class and character and a gently offbeat quality, has been on a gentle uphill climb in the US for over 30 years, now ranking in the Top 100. With an intriguing number of vivacious nicknames, from Jo to Josie to Fifi to Posy, Josephine is a Nameberry favorite.
 
Josephine is the feminine form of Joseph, a name ultimately derived from the Hebrew Yosef, meaning "Jehovah increases." In French it has an accent over the first E, which was omitted in the English, German, and Dutch translations of the name. Empress Joséphine du Beauharnais was born Marie-Josephe-Rose, but called Josephine by her husband, Napolean Bonaparte.
 
Josephine Baker (born Freda), the American-French singer, dancer, and civil rights activist, is a potential namesake.
 Some of the Josephines in literature and recent pop culture are known by their nicknames—the admirably headstrong Jo in Little Women, Joey Potter (played by Katie Holmes) in Dawson's Creek, and Josie of Josie and the Pussycats. In Some Like it Hot, Josephine was the nom de femme of Tony Curtis.
 Josephines have been the subjects of countless songs, performed by artists ranging from Fats Domino to Tori Amos to the Black Crowes.

Josephine

Katerina and its near-identical twin Katarina have a pleasingly lilting European sound, though for some Americans they may be uncomfortably close to Katrina, which will be linked for a long time to the hurricane that devastated New Orleans.

Katerina

Kristen may be somewhat past its fashion high point, but it remains forever crystalline clear. Possible problem: confusion with the similar <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/173/scandinavian-names">Scandinavian names</a> Kristin, Kirsten, Kirstie, et al.
 Current celebrity bearers include Kristens Stewart, Wiig, and Bell.

Kristen

Laura is a hauntingly evocative perennial, never trendy, never dated, feminine without being fussy, with literary links stretching back to Dante. All this makes Laura a more solid choice than any of its more decorative counterparts and one of the most classic <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/l">girl names starting with L</a>. 
 Laura has ranked on the <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names">popular names</a> list since official US records have been kept. A frequent Top 20 name from 1963 to 1986, reaching Number 10 in 1969, Laura remained in the Top 100—minus a brief stretch from 1935 to 1944—until as recently as 2001. 
 The meaning of the name, laurel, implies victory via the laurel wreath worn by Olympic athletes and Roman emperors. It was first made famous by the Laura to whom the Italian Renaissance poet Petrarch dedicated many of his love poems and was later used by Dickens in Bleak House.
 Well known Lauras include First Lady Bush, Little House writer Ingalls Wilder, designer Ashley, and actors Dern and Linney.

Laura

A Scottish place and surname that was once adrogynous but now leans about 20 to 1 toward the girls' side, Leslie has a pleasant, heathery feel that kept it in or near the Top 100 for several decades; the Lesly and Lesley spellings are also frequently used, especially in Britain. While Leslie may not be the freshest name in the bunch, it's become a modern classic and is one of the surprising names always to have ranked among the US Top 1000 for girls.
 Trivia tidbit: Both President Gerald Ford and comedian Bob Hope were born Leslie, and Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart used the name for their daughter, in honor of actor Leslie Howard.

Leslie

A versatile classic, Lucy is both sweet and solid, a saint's name, and the heroine of several great novels. First fashionable in England and Wales, Lucy is now a popular choice in the US, The Netherlands, and New Zealand.
 
The English form of the Roman Lucia, Lucy derives from the Latin word lux, meaning “light.” Once given to girls born at dawn, Lucy is also associated with Saint Lucia, the patron saint of the blind.
 
Lucy has a wide range of namesakes, from the bossy friend in the Peanuts comic, to psychedelic "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds," to the rash and zany heroine of I Love Lucy. 
 
It is a name with a rich literary history, chosen for the heroines of Charlotte Brontë’s novel Villette, E.M. Forster’s A Room With A View, Jamaica Kincaid’s Lucy, and C. S Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia - just to name a few. 
 
Beyond fiction, Lucy Stone was an important American activist, Lucy Worsley is a successful author and historian, and Lucy Lui is an actress who has imparted strength and style to the name.
 
Simple but sophisticated, playful but grounded, it is no wonder Lucy is a popular choice. Given to over 4000 girls in the US each year, it is a classic that doesn’t feel dusty.
 
If you love Lucy, but don’t love its popularity, you could consider one of its many variants. From vintage Lucille, to the musical Lucetta, to the fresh, unexpected Lux; from nickname-y Lou to sleek Luciana, there are plenty of possibilities.

Lucy

Capturing some of the playful elegance of Madeleine, while avoiding any confusion over end sound, Madelyn is now an established spelling variation of the French classic. Sweet but strong, Madelyn is a versatile choice that lends itself to the almost inevitable nickname Maddy. 
Derived from the Hebrew name Magdalene, meaning “of Magdala” or “from the high tower”, Madelyn has been in use since the 1890s. 
It did take nearly a century for it to really catch on, however, and even now, Madeline and Madeleine are more popular across the globe – and among Nameberry users. Nevertheless, in 2009, Madelyn took over in the US as the number one spelling choice of the name. 
Given to nearly 4000 babies every year, it sounds classic, like Matilda or Caroline, while still looking like an on-trend option, such as Evelyn and Raelynn. 
The disadvantage of this name, however, is that when you combine all its spelling variants – from Madelaine to Madilynn – it is given to nearly 10,000 babies every year. Throw Madison into the mix and suddenly you’re looking at a lot of Maddys, and a name that feels like a Top 10 option even when it isn’t. 
Such popularity might not bother you at all, but if you were interested in similar but lesser-used options (in the US at least), you could consider the original Magdalene or Magdalena, or perhaps an international variant like Maialen, Matleena, Magali, or Malin. Other alternatives could include Marigold, Gwendolyn, Madelief, Madita, or Merrilyn.

Madelyn

Maggie is a cute, earthy short form that has been in style for several decades now, still sometimes used as an independent name by such parents as Jon Stewart. First used in Scotland, it got a large bump in popularity via the 1971 Rod Stewart hit song "Maggie May." Today's Maggie might just as well be short for a more adventurous name such as Magdalena or Magnolia as for the classic Margaret. 
Maggie Gyllenhaal was born Margaret.

Maggie

Maren is one of the many twenty-first-century takes on Mary--but we find the more classic Marin spelling preferable.  When spelled Maren, the pronunciation seems more clearly to resemble Mary, with the emphasis on the first syllable.  Marin, the spelling also used for the beautiful coastal county north of San Francisco, is often pronounced with the emphasis on the second syllable, as in Marie.

Maren

Nadia, an accessible Slavic favorite, has a strong run of popularity in the US in the early 2000s, partially thanks to the character on Lost called Nadia but actually named Noor, but it's since slumped down the rankings. An earlier inspiration was Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci, who won the 1976 Olympics. Nadia is actually a short form of Nadezhda, the name of Lenin's wife, though more Westerners will relate it to the familiar Natalya or Natasha.

 Nadia is also a traditional Arabic name, popular in the Muslim community and also spelled Nadiyya or Nadya. It means "moist, tender, delicate" in Arabic.

 Octomom Suleman spells her first name Nadya, as in the Queen Nadya character in Noel Coward's play The Queen was in the Parlour.

Nadia

Nora is a lovely, refined name that conjures up images of Belle Epoch ladies in fur-trimmed coats skating in Central Park. Long seen as a quintessentially Irish name though its roots are not in Ireland, Nora is a quietly stylish favorite that's tiptoed to the top of the popularity ladder.
 
Nora has two separate origin stories, as a derivative of both Honora and Eleanor. The Irish and Anglo-Norman version derives from Honora, based on the Latin word honor. The Hungarians spawned Nora as a short form of Eleonora, a variation of Eleanor.
 One of Nora's most prominent contemporary namesakes is the late witty writer Nora Ephron. Other notable Noras are the independent Ibsen heroine of A Doll's House, and the female half of the witty Nick and Nora Charles duo, adding up to a most desirable choice. 
 It can also be spelled Norah, as in Norah Jones.

Nora

Olivia, a lovely Shakespearean name with an admirable balance of strength and femininity, is the Number 1 name for baby girls in the US and one of the top girls' names around the world. 
 
Olivia ranks among the Top 10 girls' names in several English-speaking countries as well as in Spain, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, and Argentina. And it's a Top 100 name in most countries that keep baby-naming statistics, making it an internationally flexible choice. 
Records of the name Olivia exist from as far back as 13th century England, but the name was popularized after Shakespeare used it for the name of the countess in Twelfth Night. Olivia is based on the Latin word oliva, meaning "olive." In ancient Greece, the olive was a symbol of Athena as well as a token of peace and fertility, and olive wreaths were awarded to the winners at the Olympic games. 
 
Olivia has been a popular celebrity baby name for fifteen years, and has also been a well-used TV character name, such as in Olivia Benson on Law & Order SVU and the recent powerful lead Olivia Pope on Scandal.
 
Golden Age star Olivia de Havilland was influential in bringing the name to U.S. attention, followed by Olivia Newton-John, and now we have Olivias Wilde, Munn, Rodrigo, Colman and Williams.
 If you love <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names">popular names</a>, Olivia might be the perfect choice for you, but parents in search of a distinctive name will have to keep looking. Some related alternatives: Olive, Livia, Liv.

Olivia

Penelope is an unlikely 21st century baby name success story. Off the Top 1000 for 25 years, Penelope jumped back on in 2001 and has been heading uphill ever since, propelled by the trend for mythological names, Spanish actress Penelope Cruz, and some high-profile celebrity babies. 
 
In Greek mythology, Penelope was the wife of Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey. It has two possible origin stories—Penelope was either derived from the Greek pēnē, meaning "thread of a bobbin", or from penelops, a type of duck. Mythological Penelope was cared for by a duck as an infant, and later was known for fending off would-be suitors by pretending to weave a garment.
 
Penelope's status as a Kardashian baby name -- Kourtney's daughter Penelope was born in 2012 -- brought the ancient name to widespread attention. The most popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/p">girls' name starting with P</a>, Penelope was also picked for their girls by Tina Fey, by Anna Chlumsky, and by Natalie and Taylor Hanson, of the group Hanson. 
 Penelope has several British novelists as namesakes—Penelopes Fitzgerald, Mortimer, Gilliatt, and Lively. And yes, she's also a Harry Potter character: Penelope "Penny" is a student at Hogwarts.
 A perennial Nameberry favorite, Penelope can be shortened to the traditional Penny or -- Berry style -- the fresher Nell or Poppy.

Penelope

Quincy is a Presidential surname name that actually sounds both cute and strong when used for a girl. For the first time ever, Quincy joined the Top 1000 roster for girls in 2023, given to over 250 baby girls that year.

The popularity of Quinn may have inspired the rise of Quincy for girls, but the two names have different roots. Quinn is an Irish surname while Quincy is one of several names drawn from the Latin word for the number five.

Quincy

Rory is a buoyant, spirited name for a redhead with Celtic roots. The name Rory is getting more popular overall, but for the past few years has been trending decidedly toward the boys' side -- however, it's been rising to new heights for girls in recent years. 
 It's worth noting, however, that while Rory is used a third of the time for girls in the US, in Britain it's never used as a girls' name. In London or Liverpool, naming your daughter Rory is like naming her....Roger.
 Rory (or Rori) might also be a nickname for Aurora. In the TV series Gilmore Girls, Rory was the nickname of Lorelai Leigh, the daughter character played by Alexis Biedel whose mother, played by Lauren Graham, was also named (and called) Lorelai.
 Robert Kennedy's youngest daughter, born after his assassination and now a respected documentary filmmaker, is named Rory. Actress Melora Hardin named her daughter Rory Melora.

Rory

Rosaline, which can be pronounced to rhyme with mine or mean in its final syllable, has a deeper, richer pedigree than it might seem.  Rosaline was used twice by Shakespeare and was also used in the poetry of Edmund Spenser. While we prefer the stronger-sounding Rosalind or Rosamund, Rosaline deserves another contemporary look.

Rosaline

Sara, the streamlined form of Sarah, makes this ancient name feel more modern, but perhaps a bit lighter weight. 
 
Some Old Testament sources give Sara as a variation of Sarai, the Biblical personage's original name, and some give it as the authentic form of the new name of Isaac's 90-year-old mother Sarah. But most sources authenticate Sarah as the Biblical classic and Sara as the variation.
 
Currently in the US, there are about two baby girls named Sarah for every one given the Sara spelling.
 
Nameberry visitors have debated whether Sara is pronounced differently from Sarah. In the US, the answer is, usually not, but in some countries, Sara is sah-rah while Sarah's first syllable rhymes with hair.

Sara

Upper crust-y surname Sheridan gains some energy when used for a girl. 

Sheridan

Sophia, which was the Number 1 girls' name in the US from 2011 to 2013, is among the top girl names in the Western World, with a sensuous sound and high-minded meaning. A real winner, Sophia reached the top of the charts without losing any—okay, much—of its sophisticated beauty. 
 
Derived from sophia, the Greek word for wisdom, the name was first famous via St. Sophia, venerated in the Greek Orthodox church—St. Sophia was the mother of three daughters named Faith, Hope and Love. It was first used in England in the seventeenth century and was the name of George I's both mother and wife.
 
Like its sister baby girl names Isabella and Olivia, Sophia has gained widespread favor by appealing to a broad range of parents: Intellectuals who like it for its meaning and those attracted to its femininity, parents who want a classic name and those looking for a name with Latin roots—the Sofia spelling is also popular. Sophie is the French version of the name, more popular than Sophia in some parts of the world. Legend Sophia Loren was originally Sofia.
 
Sophia has been an author favorite from the days of early novelists like Henry Fielding (Tom Jones) and Jane Austen (Persuasion) to the TV scriptwriters of today (The Walking Dead, Orange is the New Black).
 
Sophia's only downside is its huge popularity; it's actually even more popular than it appears, because alternate spelling Sofia falls in the Top 20 on the US popularity chart. Alternative baby names you might want to consider: Sophie, Seraphina, Susannah, Zofia.

Sophia

Talia is derived from the Hebrew elements tal, meaning "dew," and yah, in reference to God. In the mythology of one ancient sect, Talia was one of ten angels who attended the sun on its daily course. The occasionally homophonous name Thalia has unrelated Greek origins.
 
In tandem with the longer-form Natalia, this pretty Russian-flavored girls’ name has been rising in the popularity charts in the US.
 
A prominent bearer is Talia Shire, doomed to go down in cinema history as Rocky's mousy girlfriend Adrienne, along with actress Talia Balsam, aka the former Mrs. George Clooney. Most recently, Talia was attributed to YouTube star Talia Joy Castellano, a young girl battling cancer who passed away at age 13.
 
Talia is also an Australian Aboriginal name meaning "near water".

Talia

Vera was the height of fashion in 1910, then was for a long time difficult to picture embroidered on a baby blanket. Now, though, it has come back into style along with other old-fashioned simple names such as Ada and Iris. 
 Vera was barely known in the English-speaking world until it appeared in the 1860 novel by Ouida, Moths, and Vera Rostov is a character in War and Peace, published nine years later.
 Vern Yip has a young daughter called Vera, and Vera Wang and Vera Famiga have modernized it. Vera Lynn was an iconic British World War II singer, Vera Miles was a Hitchcock star best known for her role as Lila Crane in Psycho and Vera-Ellen (born without the hyphen) was a dancing partner of Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly.

Vera

The name Veronica projects a triple-threat image: at once saintly, sensuous, and strong. The name derives from Berenice, the Latin form of the Greek name Berenike "she who brings victory", with the spelling influenced by the Latin phrase vera icon "true image". Veronica was the name of the compassionate woman who wiped Jesus's face when he was on his way to Calvary and whose cloth was miraculously imprinted with his image: she is now the patron saint of photographers.
 Then there was Veronica (born Constance) Lake, the peekaboo blonde of the 1940s, and the sultry, dark-haired rival of Betty in the Archie comics. And, more recently, we've had tough teen private eye, Veronica Mars. Veronica is also the name of an herb with small, bright blue flowers.
 Veronica was in the Top 100 from 1972 to 1991, but it might not be too soon for a comeback—sans the dated nickname Ronnie, although hit CW show Riverdale, loosely based on the aforementioned Archie comics, may provide a boost.

Veronica

adlouise12's list "Classy Girl Names That Don't Bore You" of 41 great name ideas: Abilene - Veronica!

Classy Girl Names That Don't Bore You

For the preppy, pretty, smart, musical, artistic future women of America.  You never know who's going to marry the next President...