She's the One

Charlotte

French, feminine diminutive of Charles

"free man"

Charlotte, the name of the young Princess of Cambridge, is the latest classic name to join Sophia, Emma, Olivia, and Isabella at the top of the popularity list. It is now among the most popular girl…

Aurora

Latin

"dawn"

The goddess name Aurora has consistently been on the US popularity list since the nineteenth century, but has really taken off in the past 30 years. Aurora also enjoys remarkable international…

Emery

English from German

"industrious"

The superpopularity of Emily and Emma has recently boosted the unisex Emery, especially since it became a celebrity baby name when it was chosen by Angie Harmon and Jason Sehorn. Emery now ranks…

Gemma

Italian, Catalonian, Spanish

"precious stone"

Gemma is a jewel of a name, an Italian classic that was very popular in 1980s England, but has only recently been started to be used here; it entered the list in 2008. Coming from a medieval Italian…

Birdie

English

"bird"

Birdie was until recently a middle-aged Ladies' Club member wearing a bird-decorated hat --but now it's just the kind of vintage nickname (think Hattie, Josie, Mamie, Millie) that's coming back into…

Adele

French diminutive of Adelaide

"noble, nobility"

Credit the award-winning single-named British singer for taking the girls’ name Adele from a quiet semi-retirement back into currency. Adele reentered the US Top 1000 popular baby names in 2011 and…

Charleigh

Variation of Charlie, English diminutive of Charlotte, French "free man"

"free man"

The popular -leigh suffix is clearly an attempt to feminize this traditionally boyish nickname — and it works. There were about 350 baby girls named Charleigh in the US last year — and zero baby…

Elyse

Variation of Elise or Elysia

"pledged to God"

Elyse hasn't been heard much since the 80s, but it's beginning to be reconsidered as a possibIlity again, now that it's not so much seen as a Mom name, as it was in the TV show "Family Ties." A…

Waverly

English

"meadow of quivering aspens"

Waverly, with its literary resonance and lilting three-syllable sound, could well become the next generation's successor to Kimberly. Its upper-crusty surname feel places it among the new stylish…

Austyn

Spelling variation of Austin or Austen

As with many other names, the y seems to make this name more girl-appropriate for some parents. About three-quarters of the babies named Austyn are female.

Ireland

Place name

Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin put Ireland on the map when they chose it as a first for their daughter, saying that geographic names were a family tradition. And it seems they were a bit ahead of the…

Audrina

Variation of Audrey

"noble strength"

Audrina is a name that owes its fame to overnight reality TV sensation Audrina Partridge, one of the original cast of the MTV reality series The Hills .

Auden

English

"old friend"

A softly poetic surname name, associated with poet W.H., Auden is enjoying quiet but marked fashion status. It was chosen for his daughter by Noah Wyle and is definitely one to watch.

Annistyn

Modern variant spelling of Anniston

Sephora

French variation of Tziporah, Hebrew

"bird"

This lovely name is a softened French version of Tziporah, the biblical wife of Moses. Unfortunately, in the US, it's become attached to the cosmetics franchise. The brand Sephora claims to have…

Britton

English

"from Britain"

Britton, technically a spelling variation of Britain, is much more popular that the original place name for both boys and girls. There are about three baby girls named Britton for every four boys,…

Ashlea

Ashlea is a feminine name representing a variation of Ashley, derived from Old English words meaning 'ash tree clearing' or 'meadow of ash trees.' This spelling variant emerged in the late 20th…