Unusual and Fancy Names for Girls

Seraphina is one of the most-searched name on Nameberry, destined for even greater popularity. The highest-ranking angels, the six-winged seraphim, inspired the lovely name Seraphina.

Ottilie is trending in the UK, where the pronounced T helps the name sound pretty and delicate, rather like Amelie and Elodie. Ottilie is less popular in the US, where many Americans pronounce it as a near-homonym for "oddly".

Arabella, lovely and elegant, has long been well used in Britain and finally made it onto the American list in 2005. A Top 50 choice in the UK, in the US in remains in the Top 300, given to around 1300 babies each year.

Delphine is a sleek, chic French name with two nature associations — the dolphin and the delphinium, a bluebell-like flower, a well as a link to the ancient city of Delphi, which the Greeks believed to be the womb of the earth. All of these derive from the Greek word delphus "womb".

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.

Melodic and beautiful but with a touch of sass, Calliope is the name of the muse of epic poetry — and perhaps less glamorously, the musical instrument on the merry-go-round. Bold and creative, it debuted in the US Top 1000 in 2016, and in more recent year, IT appeared in the Top 500.

Also spelled as Kalliope — the more traditional Greek transliteration — Calliope means "beautiful voice", making this a musical and poetic choice. It was rarely heard in the US until the 2000s when Calliope "Callie" Torres from the show Grey's Anatomy helped introduce it to a wider audience.

If you love Puritan virtue names and want to move beyond Hope and Faith and Grace, this is a wonderful choice, both for its meaning and its sound. A rare find here, though occasionally heard in England. It was used in Winston Graham's Poldark novels, was Madonna's name as James Bond's fencing instructor in Die Another Day, and made a brief appearance in Harry Potter. Not to mention being a fixture on British and Australian soaps. Verity also appears in one of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple mysteries.

Persephone is the esoteric name of the Greek mythological daughter of Zeus by Demeter, the queen of the harvest. After she was kidnapped by Hades to be Queen of the Underworld, it was decreed by Zeus that she would spend six months of the year with her mother, allowing crops to grow, and six in mourning, thus accounting for the seasons.

Wilhelmina might once have been condemned as a clunky relic best left in the past, but a steadily increasing number of parents are dusting it off for their 21st century babies. A reasonably popular choice in the 19th century, but out of favor by the 1950s, in the last decade, Wilhelmina has attracted more attention, and was given to around 110 babies in a recent year.

Balancing femininity, vintage charm, and fantasy nerdiness, Marceline is one to watch. Marceline the Vampire Queen from the 2010-2018 animated TV series Adventure Time brought her elaborate French name back into public consciousness. It re-entered the Top 1000 in 2020, after an 86 year hiatus, and rose into the 700s in 2021. Nicknames Marcie and Marcy are rising in popularity as well. Marceline may appeal to parents who like frilly, traditional, and sophisticated names such as Josephine and Genevieve.

Sabina is a sleek but neglected name from an ancient Roman tribal name that's well worth consideration. The equally alluring Sabine is heard in France and Germany. Related names include the more popular Sabrina or Serena. All are equally lovely.

This French name has the elegance of other '-ette' names such as Colette and is a botanical name without being too obvious about it.

This lovely orange-scented Spanish place-name would make an inventive namesake for an Aunt Valerie.

Lavender lags far behind sweet-smelling purple-hued sister names Violet and Lila, but is starting to get some enthusiastic attention from cutting-edge namers along with other adventurous nature names like Clementine and Marigold. In fact, 2024 saw it enter the US Top 1000 for the first time, when it was given to nearly 260 girls.

Araminta is a poetic and enchanting eighteenth-century invention with plenty of elegance and a touch of old-fashioned clunkiness. It first appeared in William Congreve's 17th century comedy The Old Bachelor and then again in 1705 when it was used by architect and playwright Sir John Vanbrugh in his play The Confederacy.

Pretty Hebrew name that would create a strong but feminine impression, as well as a variant of the Germanic name Odilia or Ottilie.

Cassiopeia, the name of a mythological mother who became a stellar constellation, is challenging but intriguing, and has all those softening Cass nicknames available. And with all names Cass-related trending, Cassiopeia may be an unusual route to a stylish name.

Philomena is an earthy Greek name now used in various Latin countries. While it has felt simply clunky for many years, it's starting -- along with such sister names as Wilhelmina and Frederica -- to sound so clunky it's cool.

Love makes an endearing middle name, as in Jennifer Love Hewitt. However, more parents are considering Love as a first name — enough for it to enter the charts for the first time in 2022 as one of the fastest-rising names of the year. Other love-related alternatives include Juliet, Valentina, and Amor.

One of the stellar unique baby names from mythology, Andromeda was the beautiful daughter of Cassiopeia who, like her mother, literally became a star--the constellation that bears her name.The Bohemian Andromeda makes a dramatic and adventurous choice in a time when four-syllable mythological names are gradually making their way into the mainstream.