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Black Night And Shadowy Names

Names that mean and/or are associated with the color black, night, darkness, the moon, and all other things that conjure up an image of the night. Bonus: Some names that are associated with the color silver and other dark colors.
  1. Layla
    • Origin:

      Variation of Leila, Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "night"
    • Description:

      A lovely musical name (remember the old Eric Clapton-Derek & the Dominos song?), Layla's seen a significant surge in popularity, partly partly all names with a double L are stylish, and partly because all the forms of the name push it into the Top 15 for girls.
  2. Lyla
    • Origin:

      Spelling variation of Lila, Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "night"
    • Description:

      The Lyla spelling variation has now superseded the original Lila — the former remains on the rise while the latter is consistently falling in popularity.
  3. Colton
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "from the coal or dark town"
    • Description:

      Colton is a trendy two-syllable choice, with the popular 'on/en' ending.
  4. Melanie
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "black, dark"
    • Description:

      Gone with the Wind inspired a generation of girls named Melanie, though it looks as though Scarlett will triumph in the end.
  5. Lilah
    • Origin:

      Variation of Lila, Arabic, English
    • Meaning:

      "night"
    • Description:

      Lilah may be a simple spelling variation of Lila— itself an alternative form of the Arabic Leila — or you might think of it as a shortening of Delilah or an Anglicization of the Hebrew Lilach, which means lilac. Whatever the root, it's a beautiful and stylish name. The final h adds balance or creates needless complications, depending on your viewpoint.
  6. Amaya
    • Origin:

      Spanish version of Amaia or Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "mother city; the end; night rain"
    • Description:

      The Spanish form of Amaya is both a given name and a surname, originating from the Spanish mountain and village of Amaya. In this context it means "mother city" or "the capital." Amaya can also be considered a derivation of Amaia, a Basque name meaning "the end." In Japan, Amaya is a surname.
  7. Cole
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "swarthy, coal black"
    • Description:

      Cole -- a short name that embodies a lot of richness and depth -- has long been associated with the great songwriter Cole Porter. It's quite popular in Scotland.
  8. Lila
    • Origin:

      Arabic, Sanskrit
    • Meaning:

      "night; play"
    • Description:

      Lila is one of the girl names with a double l sound — Lila, Lola, Layla, Leila, Lily et al — that have caught on in a major way., Delicate yet dynamic, Lila has a slightly international flair.
  9. Blakely
    • Origin:

      English surname
    • Meaning:

      "dark wood or clearing"
    • Description:

      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 English names for girls.
  10. Kiara
    • Origin:

      English variation of Chiara, Italian, Ciara, Irish, or Aboriginal Australian, Korean
    • Meaning:

      "light, clear; little dark one; cockatoo; first ray of sun"
    • Description:

      Kiara can be considered a variation of both the Italian name Chiara and the Irish name Ciara. Chiara is the Italian form of Clara, meaning "bright" or "clear," while Ciara is the feminine form of male given name Ciar, derived from the old Irish cíar, meaning "dark."
  11. Delaney
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "dark challenger; dark river"
    • Description:

      Delaney has been a popular surname-style choice since 90s, when it joined other Irish surnames such as Cassidy, Kennedy, and Mallory on the US Charts. Buoyant, bright, and cheerful, it ranks in the US Top 250 and is given to nearly 1300 babies every year.
  12. Leila
    • Origin:

      Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "night"
    • Description:

      Leila was popularized in the West by the poet Byron, who used it in his poem Don Juan for a ten-year-old Turkish girl. Leila also appears as a fairy in the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera Iolanthe.
  13. Lilith
    • Origin:

      Assyrian, Sumerian
    • Meaning:

      "ghost, night monster"
    • Description:

      Lilith is derived from the Akkadian word lilitu meaning "of the night." In Jewish folklore she is portrayed as Adam's rejected first wife, who was turned into a night demon for refusing to obey him. Lilith is unrelated to most other Lil- names, with the exception of Lilita, which is the Latvian variation.
  14. Blake
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "fair-haired, dark"
    • Description:

      The unisex Blake, which indeed has two conflicting meanings, has a briskly efficient image when used for a girl.
  15. Sullivan
    • Origin:

      Irish surname
    • Meaning:

      "black-eyed one"
    • Description:

      Sullivan is a jaunty Celtic three-syllable name, with a real twinkle in its eye. It was immortalized in the 1930s classic film Sullivan's Travels and was chosen for one of Patrick Dempsey's twin boys. Nickname Sully is equally jaunty.
  16. Blake
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "fair-haired, dark"
    • Description:

      Blake -- an early unisex option -- dropped out of the Top 100 in 2017 for the first time since 1988, but remains a sophisticated choice. And yes, both conflicting meanings of Blake are accurate. It originated as a surname in England derived from a nickname. Much of its masculine image was influenced by the wealthy, silver-haired character Blake Carrington in the massively popular 80s TV series Dynasty. Rosie O'Donnell has a son named Blake.
  17. Samara
    • Origin:

      Hebrew, Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "under God's rule, companion in night conversation"
    • Description:

      Alluring and lovely — and much more distinctive now than Samantha or Tamara. Samara is a city in western Russia, a winged seed like the whirlygigs that fall from maple trees, as well as a bona fide first name that could make a more unusual update on Samantha or Mara. It can also be a variant spelling of the Arabic name Samira or Sameera.
  18. Kali
    • Origin:

      Sanskrit, English
    • Meaning:

      "black one; free man; beauty"
    • Description:

      Kali is a number of different things: a playful, contemporary twist on the name Callie; the Hindu goddess of destruction; an alternative spelling for Kaylee; a short form of the Arablic Kalila, the Greek Kalista, or the African American Kaliyah; a masculine name in India; and a trendy form of Kali(fornia).
  19. Kieran
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "little black-haired one"
    • Description:

      Long popular in Ireland and England, Kieran, the name of Ireland's first-born saint and twenty-five other saints, has been building its U.S. fan base thanks to its strong and attractive sound, and its fashionable Irish brogue. While Ciaran is the more authentic Irish spelling, Kieran is more popular this side of the Atlantic.
  20. Laila
    • Origin:

      Spelling variation of Layla or Sami variation of Helga, Arabic or Finnish
    • Meaning:

      "night; holy"
    • Description:

      Beguiling and lovely, Laila is one of the lilting variations of Leila and Layla. It's the name of the former-boxer daughter of Muhammad Ali and of actor Shawn Wayans. In Finland, the Sami people use this in place of the Scandinavian name Helga.

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