User-created list
Honouring my loved ones
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Elma
Diminutive of Wilhelmina, German and Dutch
"resolute protection"
Historically a diminutive of Wilhelmina, Elma's parent name and soundalike sisters are slowly stirring back to life as the trend for vintage baby names continues. With Alma on the rise in the US,…
Nuala
Irish, short form of Fionnuala
"white shoulders"
Officially a shortening of the traditional and tricky Gaelic Fionnghuala/Fionnuala, Nuala makes a lovely choice all on its own. Nuala is well-used in Ireland.
Calla
Greek
"beautiful"
Calla is a botanical name that is much more distinctive than popular Lily or similar Callie. Rarely heard today, it did appear in the popularity lists in the last decades of the nineteenth century.…
Linnea
Swedish
"twinflower, lime tree"
Linnea is an attractive Scandinavian name that derives from the renowned 18th century Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, who developed the Linnean system of classifying plants and animals. Linnea is…
Kora
Malayalam variation of Cyriacus, Greek
"of the lord"
Seamus
Irish variation of James
"supplanter"
Parents who have tired of Sean are now contemplating Seamus, the Irish form of James, which has a lot more substance and verve. One of the name's most famous bearers is the 1995 Nobel Prize-winning…
Lulu
Diminutive of Louise or Lucy, or Arabic
"pearl"
Lula has a firecracker personality, a singing and dancing extrovert. Interesting that Lulu was a Top 100 name when the Social Security list was born in 1880, but it's been sliding ever since and has…
Perla
Spanish variation of Pearl
Consistently popular Latina gem name; good choice for those who can't shake Pearl's grandmotherly vibe.
Adora
Latin
"adored"
A name that would lavish your child with adoration, a princess name--as in Princess Adora of She-Ra: Princess of Power .
Vida
Spanish, Slovene, Lithuanian, Persian, Swedish, Serbian,"life, visible, willow, to see"
"life, visible, willow, to see"
Vida is a multicultural gem, familiar in a number of languages by not overly popular. It featured in the US Top 1000 in the first half of the 20th century, and in recent years, it has seen renewed…
Rasmus
Finnish and Scandinavian variation of Erasmus
"beloved, desired"
A form of ancient name newly popular in Eastern Europe, Rasmus is rugged and distinctive - and on trend in Estonia and Finland. Virtually unknown in the U.S. but with its philosophical roots and…
Bard
English, Gaelic
"minstrel, poet"
A literary word name, now synonymous with Shakespeare, Bard also refers more generally to a poet, particularly one who recited epics and traditional poems out loud. Similar in sound to Bernard,…
Tennyson
English
"son of Dennis"
Few people would have considered the surname of this famous Victorian poet as a first name until Russell Crowe chose it for his son in 2006. But, as a rhythmic three-syllable patronymic, Tennyson has…
Liesl
German diminutive of Elizabeth
"pledged to God"
Sweet but sleek, and distinctive, Liesl is an old German nickname-name for Elisabeth. It might have once seemed inextricably tied to to its country of origin, but now, like Elsa, Enzo, Saoirse,…
Tova
Hebrew, Swedish
"good, pleasing; beautiful, beloved"
A lively feeling choice with multicultural origins, Tova is both a Hebrew name with a positive meaning and a Swedish variant of Tove, a modern Old Norse name meaning "beautiful, beloved". In Hebrew,…
Vesta
Latin
"pure"
The name of the Roman goddess of the household is not recommended for your little goddess. More on that deity: Vesta is primarily associated with the vestal virgins, her priestesses, who tended the…
Nica
Short form of Veronica, Latin
"true image"
More often spelled Nika, this is a well-used diminutive for the Eastern European Veronika, and there's no reason that the same principle can't apply in the West. It makes a venerated saint's name…
Nika
Russian, diminutive of Veronika; Slovenian; Croatian, feminine form of Nicholas
Enticing modern nickname name possibility.
Sian
Welsh variation of Jane
"God is gracious"
Simple and pretty and user-friendly, the Welsh Sian was used by U2's Dave "the Edge" Evans for his daughter. In Welsh, it is also spelled Siân.
Bastian
Diminutive or variant of Sebastian, Latin, Greek
"man of Sebastia"
A name that sounds both arty and rough-and-tumble, Bastian can be used as either a short form or a stand-alone variant of elegant Sebastian. Also spelled as Bastien, Bastiaan, and Bastían, it notably…
