User-created list
By two.bees.poetry · Updated April 2024
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French form of Apollonia, feminine variation of Apollo, Greek mythology name
"destroyer"
Apolline is a luscious French name chic in Paris -- it's a Top 100 name for baby girls in France -- and ripe for the plucking in the English-speaking world. Derived from the mythological name Apollo,…
French, feminine variation of Claude
"lame; enclosure"
Once seen as a dated French Claudette-Colbert feminization, along with Annette and Paulette, we can see Claudette moving into a more plausible Colette-Cosette arena. While some may be put off by the…
From Greek
"orchid flower"
Orchid is a hothouse bloom that has not been plucked by many modern baby namers — yet. In the language of flowers, orchids symbolize love, beauty, and sophistication. In a 1926 silent comedy, femme…
French
"victory"
Adds French flair to Victoria, though many Americans would find pronunciation a challenge.
Flower name, from German
"noble white"
Edelweiss, made famous by the Rogers and Hammerstein song in "The Sound of Music", is a rare female name. In German 'edel' means 'noble' and 'weiss' means 'white'. Edelweiss is the colloquial name…
French diminutive of Anne
"grace"
There was a time when French names like Annette, Paulette – and Nanette – were chic, but now, we'd have to say "No, no, Nanette".
Flower name; Latin
"healing"
One of the rarest of the floral names, though not without some teasing potential. Peony is a historical 1948 novel by Pearl S. Buck.
Latin
"lovable"
Amabel is an older name than Annabel and a lot more distinctive. Amabel was a very common name in the twelfth and thirteen centuries, then was revived during the nineteenth century British fad for…
French from Latin
"angel"
The French word for angel is Ange, but Angèle is the French version of the name Angela, and feels much fresher nowadays.
Flower name, from Greek
"asphodel"
Yes, though it seems so extreme, girls were actually sometimes given this name a century ago; now it is so uncommon it would make a strong springtime statement. Biggest obstacle: the nickname Daffy.…
German and Frisian short form of Elizabeth
"pledged to God"
Elizabeth is a name of hundreds of variations, but this German name for girls , redolent of the Olde Country, is unfamiliar in the U.S. and likely to remain so.
Octavie is a feminine name with Latin origins, derived from the Roman name Octavius, meaning 'eighth' or 'born eighth.' It's the feminine form of Octave, particularly used in French-speaking regions.…
English flower name from French
"thought"
Pansy is an early floral name that lost credibility when it became a derogatory slang term for gay people. Better these days: Posy or Poppy.
English from Greek
"leaf"
Petal is the soft and sweet-smelling name of a character in the novel and film, The Shipping News . With the rise of such flower names as Poppy and Posy, we believe Petal — down-to-earth yet romantic…
Feminine form of Pierre, French version of Peter
"rock"
Pierrette is the French feminine form of Peter or Pierre, an antiquated if charming feminization in the style of Albertine.
"small town"
Charming Gallic name uncommon in France, and unknown in this country, with literary credibility as the title of a Charlotte Brontë novel.
