Awesome Finnish Names

Laura

English from Latin

"from Laurentum or bay laurel"

Laura is a hauntingly evocative perennial, never trendy, never dated, feminine without being fussy, with long-standing literary links. All this makes Laura a more solid choice than any of its more…

Laila

Spelling variation of Layla or Sami variation of Helga, Arabic or Finnish

"night; holy"

Beguiling and lovely, Laila is one of the lilting variations of Leila and Layla. It's the name of the former-boxer daughter of Muhammad Ali and of actor Shawn Wayans. In Finland, the Sami people use…

Amanda

Latin

"she must be loved"

Amanda may no longer be the most popular girls' name in her class, but it still holds appeal with its pleasing meaning and solid yet romantic sound. Its heyday however was back in the eighties when…

Hanna

Spelling variation of Hannah

This simplified version is not nearly as popular as the original (it also destroys a perfectly good palindrome), and has been on the decline in recent years.

Amalia

German

"work"

Originally popularized in eighteenth century Europe due to the fame of Anna Amalia, a Duchess who was a great patron of the arts, Amalia is now a widely cross-cultural name, heard from Italy to…

Irene

Greek

"peace"

Serene Irene, the name of the Greek goddess of peace and one of the most familiar Greek goddess names , was hugely popular in ancient Rome and again in the United States a hundred years ago. One of…

Jenna

English, diminutive of Jennifer

"white shadow, white wave"

Jenna was first noted on the 1980s TV series Dallas , later associated with one of the First Twin Daughters. Jenna is still being used, but no longer feels much fresher than Jennifer. You can also…

Lea

Variation of Lee or Leah

"meadow; weary"

While traditionally pronounced as a homonym for Lee, Glee actress Lea Michele pronounces her name like Leah, and it may also rhyme with Freya. Regardless of your preferred pronunciation, it's…

Johanna

Hebrew

"God is gracious"

Johanna is the version of this name used in Holland, Germany, and Scandinavia. The extra h makes Johanna a slightly more dignified version of Joanna. A notable namesake is the author of Heidi ,…

Teresa

Spanish

"to harvest"

How do you spell Teresa? Teresa, the simpler phonetic form of this name, was the most popular variation for its early life, when it was used exclusively in Spain and Portugal. Other spellings of…

Annika

Swedish diminutive of Anna

"grace"

Annika is a surprise hit of recent years, inspired by golfer Sorenstam; for Trekkies, it was also the name of a 'Star Trek:Voyager' character. Some people's first memory of it might be as Pippi…

Alli

Alli is a versatile name that functions across genders, though it's presented here as feminine. It has multiple origins: it can be a diminutive of Allison, Alice, or Alexandra for girls, giving it…

Anja

Scandinavian; Finnish; Slovene; Croatian; Serbian, from Russian

"grace"

Anja is one of the most international of several versions of Ann/Anna now being imported, also including Anya and Annika. Anja is heard in several European cultures, including Germany, the…

Anneli

Scandinavian variation of Annalie or Hannah

"grace"

Anneli is one of the hundreds of Anne variations with an intriguing spelling. This name has been popular throughout Scandinavia over time and would certainly translate easily to English-speaking…