Names from A Family History of Ivy May

Cam

Diminutive of Cameron or Camilla

A Pam for the modern age, improved by a harder edge and a tad less prissiness.

Mari

Variation of Maria or Mary, Basque, Japanese

"drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved; gift, mother; truth, genuine, villlage"

Mari enjoyed some mid-century popularity as a nicknameish version of Mary, but now deserves a second look as a multicultural classic. Popular in Norway and Armenia as a variation of Marie, it is also…

May

Diminutive of Margaret and Mary; month name

May is a sweet old-fashioned name that hasn't been on the national charts in several decades, but is definitely sounding fresh and springlike. Parents are beginning to see it once more as one of the…

Feliz

Feliz is a feminine name with Spanish and Portuguese origins, directly meaning "happy" or "fortunate." Simple yet profound, this name bestows an inherently positive quality upon its bearer. While…

Erika

English and Scandinavian variation of Erica, Norse feminization of Eric or Italian word name

"eternal ruler; heather"

This is a more spunky and Nordic looking variant of Erica, but the k also makes the connection to the beautiful flower less apparent.

Anneke

Dutch

"grace"

Dutch, Limburgish and Afrikaans diminutive of Anne.

Primrose

English flower name

"first rose"

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…

Linden

English tree name

"tree of the genus Tilla"

Though this name of a sturdy tree that can live for centuries was quite popular for boys in the first half of the twentieth century, at this point in time we can see Linden as a fresh-sounding…

Lulu

Diminutive of Louise or Lucy, or Arabic

"pearl"

Lula has a firecracker personality, a singing and dancing extrovert. Interesting that Lulu was a Top 100 name when the Social Security list was born in 1880, but it's been sliding ever since and has…