1960s Girl Names - Common AND Rare Names

  1. Winifred
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "blessed peacemaking"
    • Description:

      One of the few remaining unrestored vintage gems, with a choice of two winning nicknames--the girlish Winnie and the tomboyish Freddie. Winifred, the name of a legendary Welsh saint, was a Top 200 name into the mid-1920's.
  2. Walena
    • Waljo
      • Walthera
        • Waydell
          • Wilena
            • Yolanda
              • Origin:

                Spanish from Greek
              • Meaning:

                "violet flower"
              • Description:

                Yolanda conjures up visions of midcentury films like "Yolanda and the Thief," complete with gauzy veils, harem pants, and invisible navels. Iolanthe, with the first syllable pronounced the same as in Yolanda, is a softer version, but most modern parents would opt for the English Violet.
            • Yoshie
              • Yvonne
                • Origin:

                  French
                • Meaning:

                  "yew wood"
                • Description:

                  Peaking in the 1950s, Yvonne has now dropped out of the Top 1000 in 2003 and doesn't look set to return soon, although its rare Y initial might endear it to some. Yvaine, from Neil Gaiman's Stardust, has more modern appeal.
              • Zella
                • Origin:

                  African, Bobangi
                • Meaning:

                  "lacking nothing, one who knows the way"
                • Description:

                  This is an African name that would fit into any culture.
              • Zelma
                • Origin:

                  German, diminutive of Anselma
                • Meaning:

                  "God helmet"
                • Description:

                  The Selma-Thelma-Velma connection dates it.