If You Like Holly...

  1. Violet
    • Origin:

      English from Latin
    • Meaning:

      "purple"
    • Description:

      Violet is soft and sweet, yet with a vivacious edge. Today, Violet is the top flower name for girls, outranking Lily and Iris in the Top 100, and the second most popular color name for girls after Scarlett.
  2. Lily
    • Origin:

      English flower name
    • Meaning:

      "lily"
    • Description:

      Lily is the most popular of the popular delicate century-old flower names now making a return, thanks to its many irresistible attributes: a cool elegance and a lovely sound, a symbol of purity and innocence, and a role in Christian imagery.
  3. Juniper
    • Origin:

      Latin tree name
    • Meaning:

      "young"
    • Description:

      Juniper is a fresh-feeling nature name -- it's a small evergreen shrub -- with lots of energy. A new favorite of fashionable parents, Juniper joins such other tree and shrub names as Hazel, Acacia, and Willow.
  4. Ivy
    • Origin:

      Botanical name
    • Description:

      The quirky, offbeat and energetic botanical name Ivy is enjoying a deserved revival, propelled even higher by its choice by high-profile parents Beyonce and Jay-Z for daughter Blue Ivy. Ivy is also traditionally used at Christmas, make this one of the perfect names for December babies.
  5. Felicity
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "good fortune, happy"
    • Description:

      Felicity is as accessible a virtue name as Hope and Faith, but much more feminine -- and dare we say, happier. The hit TV show did a lot to soften and modernize the once buttoned-up image of Felicity, and it got further notice as the red-haired Colonial doll, Felicity Merriman, in the American Girl series. A current bearer is actress Felicity Huffman.
  6. Daisy
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Margaret or flower name, English
    • Meaning:

      "day's eye"
    • Description:

      Daisy, fresh, wholesome, and energetic, is one of the flower names that burst back into bloom after a century's hibernation. In 2024, it burst back into the Top 100 for the first time since 1908.
  7. June
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "young"
    • Description:

      June, a sweetly old-fashioned month name derived from the goddess Juno, was long locked in a time capsule with June Allyson (born Ella) and June Cleaver, but is rising again especially as a middle name.
  8. Sage
    • Origin:

      Herb name, Latin
    • Meaning:

      "wise and knowing"
    • Description:

      Sage is an evocatively fragrant herbal name that also connotes wisdom, giving it a double advantage. It entered the Top 1000 at about the same time for both genders in the early 1990s, but it has pulled ahead for the girls. Toni Collette named her daughter Sage Florence.
  9. Poppy
    • Origin:

      Flower name, English from Latin
    • Meaning:

      "red flower"
    • Description:

      Poppy, unlike most floral names which are sweet and feminine, has a lot of spunk. Long popular throughout the rest of the English-speaking world, Poppy is finally starting to rise toward the top in the US, where it entered the Top 1000 for the first time in 2016.
  10. Willow
    • Origin:

      English nature name
    • Meaning:

      "willow tree"
    • Description:

      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.
  11. Constance
    • Origin:

      English version of Latin Constantia
    • Meaning:

      "steadfastness"
    • Description:

      Constance is one of the more subtle of the virtue baby names, but still has quite a prim and proper image. One impediment to its revival has been the decidedly dated nickname Connie, though modern parents might well opt for using the strong and dignified name in full.
  12. Erin
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "from the island to the west"
    • Description:

      First-wave Irish name and place name—the poetic name for Ireland—now supplanted by newer alternatives such as Maeve and Delaney.
  13. 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.
  14. Fern
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "plant name"
    • Description:

      Of all the botanicals, Fern has been one of the slowest to move back from the front parlor into the nursery, despite the appealing girl character in the children's classic Charlotte's Web. Fern was most popular from the turn of the last century through the 1940s, reaching a high of #152 in 1916. We can certainly see her rejoining the long list of popular greenery names.
  15. Noelle
    • Origin:

      French
    • Meaning:

      "Christmas"
    • Description:

      Noelle is the feminine variation of Noël, a masculine given name derived from the French word for "Christmas." As a word, Noël originated as a variant of nael, which evolved from the Latin natalis, meaning "birth." Noelle and Noel have traditionally been given to children born around Christmastime, particularly in the Middle ages.
  16. May
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Margaret and Mary; month name
    • Description:

      May is a sweet old-fashioned name that hasn't been on the national charts in several decades, but is definitely sounding fresh and springlike. Parents are beginning to see it once more as one of the prettiest middle name options. May was as high on the list as Number 57 in the 1880s; it's now 228 on Nameberry.
  17. Joy
    • Origin:

      English word name
    • Meaning:

      "joy"
    • Description:

      Joy is from an older generation of word names, which also included Merry, Bliss, and Glory -- all of which exert a certain amount of personality pressure on a child. However, Joy, like Grace, Hope, and Rose, has crossed more into name-territory than other word choices, which lightens some of that pressure.
  18. Brooke
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "small stream"
    • Description:

      Brooke has long projected an aura of sleek sophistication, and can also be seen as a stylish water name.
  19. Laurel
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "laurel tree"
    • Description:

      Laurel takes Laura back to its meaning in nature, resulting in a gentle, botanical option. Even more directly than Laura, Laurel relates back to the laurel wreath signifying success and peace in ancient Greece and Rome.
  20. Lark
    • Origin:

      English bird name
    • Description:

      Lark is getting some new and well-deserved attention as a post-Robin and Raven bird name. Although it was first recorded as a name in the 1830's, it has never appeared on the Social Security list.