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The names
Mia
Italian word name or Scandinavian short form of Maria
"drop of the sea"
Mia is an appealingly unfussy multicultural name that has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the charts and is now firmly among the ten top girl names . Mia has surpassed its mother name Maria as the Number…
Mila
Slavic, Russian
"gracious; dear"
Mila is a popular name that took a 125 year nap, ranking in the Top 1000 in 1881 and then not ranking again until 2006, after actress Mila Kunis appeared on That 70s Show . Ukrainian-born Kunis was…
Willow
English nature name
"willow tree"
An ancient tree that figures in literature from Shakespeare to Harry Potter and is believed to possess magical powers, Willow is a lovely name, as graceful as its inspiration. Willow's use as a given…
Sadie
Diminutive of Sarah
"princess"
Sadie started as a nickname for Sarah, but their images couldn't be more disparate. Where Sarah is serious and sweet, Sadie is full of sass and fun. Sadie has been soaring in popularity recently and…
Maya
Sanskrit, English, Hebrew, Estonian
"illusion, magic; mother; water; beloved, bitter, drop of the sea"
Maya, which has an almost mystical image, has been steadily climbing in popularity in the US and the English-speaking world, along with a range of other countries, including France, Germany, Israel,…
Maeve
Irish
"she who intoxicates"
Maeve is a short and sweet name that has become one of the most stylish Irish names for girls in the modern US. It joined the Top 100 for the first time in 2023 and now ranks at Number 75. Maeve…
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…
Marlowe
Variation of Marlow, English
"driftwood"
Marlowe is very much in the air, with its lovely -o ending and the modern twist it offers on the likes of Margaret, Margot, Martha, and Marlene. But is it Marlowe, Marlow, or Marlo? Well, for a girl…
Cleo
Greek
"glory"
Cleo, one of the few girls' names to boast the cool-yet-lively o ending, is of course short for Cleopatra, the name of one of the most powerful women in history. Cleo was most popular in the early…
Aya
Japanese, Hebrew, Danish, Arabic
"colorful, design; honey buzzard, bird; rock, lull, happiness; sign, verse"
Aya, barely more than a breath, is an international favorite, with origins in several languages and cultures. Popular throughout Europe, it ranks in the US Top 1000 and was chosen for nearly 470…
Dylan
Welsh
"son of the sea"
Boys' favorite retains more of its poetic, windswept quality when used for a girl, as Robin Wright and Sean Penn did. Alyssa Milano gave her daughter Elizabella Dylan as a middle name.
Micah
Hebrew
"who is like the Lord"
While Micah is traditionally a boy name, it is now increasingly used for girls too, likely because it works as an alternative to Michaela, Maia, and McKenna. Still, Micaiah, the name from which Micah…
Kaya
Scandinavian, English, Literature, Japanese
"pure; one who arranges rocks; perfume, incense; fruit, reward"
A multicultural name, that's currently on style and fits right in with Kaia, Maya, Raya, and Mia. Currently in the Top 500 in both the UK and The Netherlands, it has several different origins and…
Mischa
Russian, diminutive of Mikhail
This was a 100 percent boys' name till the willowy Mischa Barton of TV's "The OC" made it unisex, a la Sascha.
Bryn
Welsh
"hill"
Bryn is an up-and-coming gentle, yet substantial, Welsh name that would also be effective in the middle spot. In Wales it's a traditional boys' name, but it's far more popular for girls now in the…
Nico
Italian, diminutive of Nicola
"people of victory"
A much more dynamic nickname than Nicky for any of the Nic-names. Part of a growing trend of boyish nicknames for girls - alongside Stevie and Lou - Nico has cheerful, snappy sounds, and a fresh,…
Devon
English place-name
This spelling of Devon, as opposed to Devin or Devan, makes it a pretty and popular British place-name, evoking the beautiful county of farmlands and dramatic seascapes and moors in southwest…
Asha
Sanskrit; Swahili
"hope; life"
Asha is an Indian name that comes from the Sanskrit word for hope or desire, but it is also a Swahili name derived from Aisha, meaning life. Since the ascendance of Ashley through the 1980s and 90s,…