Girls

  1. Olive
    • Origin:

      English, from Latin, nature name
    • Meaning:

      "olive tree"
    • Description:

      Though greatly overshadowed by the trendy Olivia, Olive has a quiet, subtle appeal of its own -- and is now enjoying a remarkable comeback. Olive is one of only four girl names starting with O on the US Top 1000. Cool couple Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen chose it for their daughter, reviving the name to stylishness, and now Drew Barrymore has a little Olive too, as has country singer Jake Owen.
  2. Wren
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "small bird"
    • Description:

      Wren, a lilting songbird name, could be the next Robin. Wren entered the Top 1000 for the first time in 2012 and is among the new wave of popular English names for girls.
  3. Molly
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Mary, Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "bitter"
    • Description:

      Molly is one of the original nickname names, ALWAYS ranking among the US Top 500 girl names since statistics began, in 1880. Molly peaked in 1991 only to rise just as high again in 2011, and though softening retains a good measure of popularity and charm.
  4. Gemma
    • Origin:

      Italian, Catalonian, Spanish
    • Meaning:

      "precious stone"
    • Description:

      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.
  5. Rue
    • Origin:

      Botanical names or word name
    • Meaning:

      "herb; regret"
    • Description:

      Rue has gone from Golden Girls actress to Hunger Games heroine to a fresh alternative to beloved middle name Rose. This botanical name is also a coincidental double word name, meaning "regret" in English and "street" in French. Despite these unfortunate secondary meanings, Rue has real potential to be one of the most popular new middle names for girls.
  6. Sybil
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "seer, prophetess"
    • Description:

      The image of the lovely Lady Sybil, tragic youngest daughter of the Crawley family on Downton Abbey is likely to go a long way towards reviving this almost forgotten name, off the list since 1966 and most popular in the 1920s and '30s.
  7. Lavinia
    • Origin:

      Latin, from ancient place name Lavinium
    • Description:

      Lavinia is a charmingly prim and proper Victorian-sounding name which actually dates back to classical mythology, where it was the name of the wife of the Trojan hero Aeneas, who was considered the mother of the Roman people.
  8. Thalia
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "to flourish"
    • Description:

      Thalia was one of the Three Graces in Greek mythology, and also the Muse of comedy and pastoral poetry, making this a Hellenic choice worthy of consideration.
  9. Indigo
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "Indian dye"
    • Description:

      Indigo is one of the most appealing and evocative of the new generation of color names. Color names have joined flower and jewel names -- in a big way -- and Indigo, a deep blue-purple dye from plants native to India, is particularly striking for both girls and boys. Indigo is the name of a character in the Ntozake Shange novel Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo, and was used for his daughter by Lou Diamond Phillips.
  10. Althea
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "with healing power"
    • Description:

      Althea is a poetic, almost ethereal name found in Greek myth and pastoral poetry, associated in modern times with the great tennis player Althea Gibson, the first African-American to win at Wimbledon.
  11. Edie
    • Origin:

      English, diminutive of Edith
    • Meaning:

      "prosperous in war"
    • Description:

      Edie is part of the Evie-Ellie et al family of cute and friendly short forms that sometimes stand on its own. Briefly popular in the 1960s, it could well be due for rediscovery. It's already a fashionable choice in the UK, where it has ranked just outside the Top 100 for several years.
  12. Meredith
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "great ruler"
    • Description:

      Meredith is a soft, gentle-sounding name with subtle Welsh roots. Although originally a boys’ name , Meredith is used mainly for girls now.
  13. Clover
    • Origin:

      Flower name, from Old English
    • Meaning:

      "key"
    • Description:

      Clover is a charming, perky choice if you want to move beyond hothouse blooms like Rose and Lily, and it's recently become a new celeb favorite, chosen by both Neal McDonough and Natasha Gregson Wagner, who used it to honor her mother, Natalie Wood, one of whose most iconic films was Inside Daisy Clover.
  14. Soleil
    • Origin:

      French
    • Meaning:

      "sun"
    • Description:

      An attractive French word name known here via former child TV star Soleil Moon Frye, aka Punky Brewster. It started to be lightly used in the U.S. in the 1920s and is now attracting some attention as both a sunny nature and an international word name. It's currently in the Nameberry Top 500.
  15. Jocelyn
    • Origin:

      German
    • Meaning:

      "member of the Gauts tribe"
    • Description:

      Jocelyn has gotten new life and popularity as a result of the current passion for lyn endings. Though it was a male name in medieval times, now Jocelyn couldn't sound more softly feminine.
  16. Minerva
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "of the mind, intellect"
    • Description:

      Minerva is the long-neglected name of the Roman goddess of wisdom and invention, the arts and martial strength, one of the mythology names for girls that might appeal to adventurous feminist parents. With Juno and Jupiter, she made the Capitoline triad, whose worship was at the very center of Roman religion.
  17. Artemis
    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name
    • Meaning:

      "safe or butcher"
    • Description:

      Artemis, one of the key figures of the female Greek pantheon, is the ancient virgin goddess of the hunt, wilderness, animals, childbirth, and a protector of young girls, later associated with the moon. Artemis is the equivalent to the Roman Diana, but a fresher and more distinctive, if offbeat, choice.
  18. Navy
    • Origin:

      English, word name
    • Meaning:

      "fleet of ships; sea-based branch of the armed forces; dark blue"
    • Description:

      When R & B singer Nivea made this highly original choice for her daughter's name back in 2005, she claimed to have thought of it in terms of the color and not the seagoing armed service. As a word with multiple meanings, however, it could easily work as a nod to a naval officer in the family or to someone who enjoys sailing.
  19. Ariadne
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "most holy"
    • Description:

      This name of the Cretan goddess of fertility is most popular now as the more melodic Ariana, but Ariadne has possibilities of its own. It first entered the US Top 1000 in 2014. The renewed interest in the name falls in line with the revival of other mythological names like Apollo and Athena. The trendy nickname Ari doesn't hurt either.
  20. Aspen
    • Origin:

      Nature and place-name
    • Meaning:

      "a poplar tree that quakes in the breeze"
    • Description:

      Aspen is part of two groups of stylish and unique baby names: nature names and place-names. The name of a graceful tree in the poplar family with heart-shaped leaves so delicate they quiver in the gentlest breeze, Aspen is also the name of a trendy Colorado ski resort. Aspen started as a unisex name possibility but now is much more frequently worn by girls.