Girl due in Aug

Elowen

Cornish

"elm"

A beautiful modern Cornish nature name that is rapidly picking up steam in the States: even spawning variant spellings like Elowyn and Elowynn. In its native region, it wasn't widely used as a name…

Raina

Slavic and German variation of Regina

"queen"

Strong and solid, with a touch of foreign intrigue, it's the most popular of the rain-related names, with a variety of pronunciations—RAY-na, rah-EE-na, or RY-na. Alternate spellings Reyna and Rayna…

Bryony

Greek

"to sprout, to swell"

Bryony is an unusually strong plant name --the bryony is a wild climbing vine with green flowers --that caught on in the U.K. before sprouting here. The name of the young character in the Ian McEwan…

Irie

Jamaican

"positive and powerful"

A name used in the Caribbean, taken from the Rastafarian term that translates best to "positive and powerful." Rastas often greet each other by saying, "Are you feeling Irie today?"

Erie

Erie is an uncommon feminine name with multiple potential origins. It may derive from the Erie Native American tribe and the Great Lake named after them, giving it a natural, geographical connection.…

Ireland

Place name

Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin put Ireland on the map when they chose it as a first for their daughter, saying that geographic names were a family tradition. And it seems they were a bit ahead of the…

Sapphira

Greek variation of Sapphire, Hebrew jewel name

"sapphire"

Sapphira is a lovely name which unfortunately has an unsavory Biblical history. The New Testament Sapphira was killed by God for lying about a tax payment. There's a Willa Cather novel called…

Eleonora

Italian, German, Dutch, and Polish variation of Eleanor

Makes a serious name frilly and feminine, which, depending on your viewpoint, might be a good or a bad thing. In this case, we vote good.

Amorie

Spelling variation of Amory

"industrious"

While Amorie might be strictly a feminizing way to spell the unisex Amory, it also relates to the word Amore and the name Amoris, which mean love,

Avalon

Celtic

"island of apples"

Avalon, an island paradise of Celtic myth and Arthurian legend--it was where King Arthur was taken to recover from his wounds-- and also the colorful capital of the California island of Catalina--…

Ianthe

Greek

"purple flower"

Like Violet, Lavender and Lilac, Ianthe is a purple flower name. Chosen by the poet Shelley for his daughter, Ianthe has a poetic, romantic, almost ethereal quality. In the ancient myth, she was the…

Bronwyn

Welsh

"white breast"

One of the loveliest of the Welsh names , striking the perfect balance between being familiar and unusual. In Wales, the female spelling is always Bronwen, but Americans usually see a "y" as adding…

Eilidh

Gaelic form of Eleanor

Long popular in Scotland, this attractive name is strictly-speaking the Gaelic version of Eleanor, but is also often considered part of the Helen family of names. After the Normans introduced it into…

Blythe

English

"happy, carefree"

Blythe is Nameberry gem — one of those names that visitors to the site are often searching for, despite the fact it's never ranked in the US charts as a given name. The name is derived the Old…

Coralie

French from Latin

"coral"

Coralie is a French name not often heard here, though she's gaining some recognition via Neil Gaiman's similar sounding spooky and lovely children's book, Coraline . Other literary appearances:…

Annora

Latin

"honor"

Annora is a noble name, a distinctive twist on its most essential form: Honor. Other variations to explore include Honora and Nora.

Adalie

Variation of Adelie or Adalia

"noble; God is just"

Akin to Ada, Adeline, and Adele, Adalie is one of many names to derive from the Old German element adal . Musical and lively, and less popular than its many of its sisters, Adalie was given to around…