Names Meaning Rose

Rose is derived from the Latin rosa, which referred to the flower. There is also evidence to suggest it was a Norman variation of the Germanic name Hrodohaidis, meaning "famous type," and also Hros, "horse". In Old English it was translated as Roese and Rohese.

This is a name we've seen the potential of for some time now — A Greek island and a prestigious scholarship make for a preppy first name with the uber-stylish S ending. Needless to say we were not surprised that Rhodes cracked the Top 1000 in 2022, and we expect it to keep rising. Rhodes was recently chosen by actress Emma Roberts for her son, born in 2020.

Rosalie hit its apex in 1938 and then slid straight downhill until it fell off the U.S. Top 1000 completely in the 1980s, only to spring back to life in 2009 as the name of a character in the Twilight series. The beautiful vampire Rosalie Hale has breathed fresh life back into this mid-century name, and the fact that the character is both sympathetic and relatively minor means Rosalie has the chance to thrive again as a baby name without feeling unduly tied to Twilight.

Rosy-cheeked and cheery, Rosie (also spelled Rosy) has been standing on her own for many decades, back to the days of 1943 musical Sweet Rosie O'Grady. She's one of the perky nickname-names that are filling the popularity lists of other English-speaking countries. In the US, she came back to the Top 1000 in 2013, after a 30 year hiatus. In 2023, Rosie was one of the fastest rising girl names.

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 names, Rosalind might be ready for a comeback.

A quaint and quirky flower name, until recently considered a bit too prim for most American classrooms but brought back to life in recent years by the attractive character of Primrose "Prim" Everdeen in the Hunger Games series. In the Top 300 girl names in England and Wales and on Nameberry, Primrose remains rare in the US, but is made more accessible by a raft of sweet nickname options, including Rosie and Posy.

As sweet-smelling as Rose but with an international flavour, Rosa is one of the most classic Portuguese, Spanish and Italian names, which is also favored by upper-class Brits, having an ample measure of vintage charm. Rosa has been on the popularity charts for every year that's been counted, especially popular from the 1880s through the beginning of the twentieth century.

No, the pronunciation--ro-SHEEN--isn't immediately obvious to the non-Gaelic viewer, but the sound of this shiny Irish version of Rose is pretty enough to make it worth considering. Very popular in its native Ireland, it's one of many Irish girl names finding a wider audience. Earlier generations Anglicized at as Rosaleen, but we stay stick to the original.

Zaria, the name of the Nigerian capital city, could be another Z name for parents to consider. It currently ranks lower than variations Zariah and Zariyah.

This masculine floral name literally means "burning bush", and is the Bulgarian word for the dittany plant. The name derives from the highly volatile oils produced by the plant, which can actually catch fire in hot weather. A notable bearer of the Bulgarian-form of the name is Rosen Plevneliev, a former President of Bulgaria.

Rose lovers today would probably prefer Rosemary, Rosamund, or even Rose itself, all more stylish variations of the name. Some may associate this form of the name with actress Rosanna Arquette and your mom may think of SNL's Rosanne Rosanna-Danna, though that reference is lost on millennials.

If you're looking for an unusual alternative to all those Rose names, Rhoswen might be a good choice. This name has the soft sounds we've come to love from the Welsh language but is still not as familiar as Bronwen and Rhiannon.

A rare and beautiful member of the "Rose" family of names, Rosenwyn is a modern Cornish compound name meaning "white rose" or "fair rose". There is a popular Cornish folk song titled An Rosen Wyn, which may have inspired its use as a name.

A Greek island and a prestigious scholarship make an upper-crusty first name with the uber-stylish S ending. Rhodes was recently chosen by actress Emma Roberts for her son, born in 2020, but it has also started to be given to a small number of girls each year too.

Known in America via the wife of Soviet head Mikhail Gorbachev; a possibility for parents of Eastern-European descent wanting to move beyond Natasha and Nadia or for parents from the Middle East looking for a name that works in both cultures.

Roselyn was a frequent member of the US Top 1000 in the early twentieth century until it dropped off the charts in 1954. It didn't return until 2003.

Presidential surname adopted as a first by numbers of midcentury African-American parents.

Simple but sultry.

The most popular flower name in Israel, though that popularity does not extend to the US.

To those who remember, Rhoda is still reminiscent of the brassy Bronx 1970s sitcom Rhoda Morgenstern. But Rhoda has a much longer history--it is a name that can be found in the New Testament as a servant girl in the house of Mary, mother of John. Later, Rhoda appeared in the novel Vanity Fair and the Shaw play Man and Superman.