Girls Names K Through O

Mayrose

English

"rose of May"

An unusual modern combination name, reminiscent of quirky choices like Primrose or Penrose, which put the "Rose" part at the end.

Mayuri

Sanskrit

"peahen"

Mayuri is the feminine version of the name Mayur, which means peacock. The name has a mellifluous sound to it, which makes it well placed to make the transition to the West. Dancer and chorerographer…

Mazarine

French color name

Mazarine is a deep blue color also used as a first name in honor of Cardinal Mazarin, a leader of France in the 17th century. As a first name, Mazarine is as charming as it is unusual.

Mazikeen

Invented name

"harmful spirits"

Neil Gaiman invented this name for a character in his comic book Sandman . It can now be seen on the TV show Lucifer . The name was inspired by the Hebrew term Mazzikin , which refers to sinister…

Maëlys

Another feminine form of the old saint's name Maël, and highly popular in France.

Maša

Slovene and Croatian variation of Masha, Russian

"drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"

Homophonous with Masha, the Russian nickname for Maria.

Meara

Irish

"pool, lake"

A name that has many close, more familiar relatives, like Mira and Myra.

Medora

Greek

"mother's gift"

Medora is a Greek name much less common here than, say, Melanie or Melissa. It has some literary references, including as the beautiful and passionate heroine of Lord Byron's poem The Corsair, and in…

Medusa

Greek

"protect, rule"

In Greek myth, Medusa was one of the three monstrous Gorgons, with live venomous snakes in place of hair and the ability to turn people to stone with just a glance. In later myths, Medusa was…

Mehitabel

Hebrew

"God rejoices"

Most famously, the name of a 1920s alley cat.

Mei

Chinese; Hawaiian

"beautiful; plum"

Homophonous with Mae and May, the beautiful (literally) Mei is poised to climb the charts. The hero of the 2022 Disney/Pixar film Turning Red is a Chinese-Canadian teen named Meilin "Mei" Lee, which…

Meike

German variation of Mary

"bitter"

Pronounced MY-keh, this German form of Mary was very popular a few decades ago. Might make a fresh alternative to Mikayla and sisters. The Frisian version is Maike, and the Biblical male Micah sounds…

Meissa

Arabic

"the shining one"

Star in Orion that might make a fine name, except people will always assume it's Melissa, with a typo.

Mel

Diminutive of Melanie

"black, dark"

Not one but two Spice Girls are named Mel, which led to it briefly being more popular for girls than boys in the 90s and early 00s, but it has now fallen out of favor for both sexes.

Melania

Spanish and Greek variation of Melanie

"black"

The current wife of Donald Trump, Slovenian model Melania Knauss, brought this pretty version to the fore. Saint Melania was an heiress who freed thousands of enslaved people.

Melantha

Greek

"dark flower"

The th sound both softens and complicates this Melanie relative.

Melba

Modern invented name

Australian opera singer Nellie Melba—self-named for her hometown of Melbourne—inspired this now-dated name more associated today with a peach dessert and dietetic toast.

Meli

Diminutive of Melissa or Cherokee variation of Mary, Greek, Hebrew or Egyptian

"honeybee; drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"

Melia

Greek mythology name, diminutive of Amelia, or Hawaiian

"ash tree; honey; work; plumeria"

This is a rich, melodic shortening of the popular girls' name Amelia that can stand on its own. There are several figures in Greek myth named Melia, most notably a daughter of Oceanus. The Meliae are…

Melida

Greek

"honey sweet"

This alternative spelling to Melita does have an endearing feel about it, plus a quiet strength.