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Old Family Names
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The names
Nora
Diminutive of Honora or Eleonora, Latin
"honor or meaning unknown"
Nora is a lovely, refined name that conjures up images of Belle Epoch ladies in fur-trimmed coats skating in Central Park. Long seen as a quintessentially Irish name though its roots are not in…
John
Hebrew
"God is gracious"
John reigned as the most popular of all boys' Christian names for 400 years, from the time the first Crusaders carried it back to Britain until the 1950s. Then American baby namers finally seemed to…
Jacob
Hebrew
"supplanter"
Biblical Jacob ceded his Number 1 spot to biblical Noah, in 2013, after holding first place on the list of baby boy names from 1999 to 2012, given a huge boost by the Twilight phenomenon. Jacob has…
Ruth
Hebrew
"compassionate friend"
Ruth, with its air of calm and compassion, was the third most popular name in the 1890s, remaining in the Top 10 through the 1920s. It's still in use today as some parents tiring of Rachel and…
Sara
Hebrew
"princess"
Sara, the streamlined form of Sarah, makes this ancient name feel more modern, but perhaps a bit lighter weight. Some Old Testament sources give Sara as a variation of Sarai, the Biblical personage's…
Lena
English, Scottish, Dutch, German, and Scandinavian, diminutive of various names ending in -lena
This pet form of Helena and other ena-ending names, long used as an independent name, is attracting notice again as an option both multicultural and simple. Lena was a Top 100 name from 1880 to 1920.…
Astrid
Scandinavian
"divinely beautiful"
Astrid has been a Scandinavian royal name since the tenth century, and many people associated it with the Swedish author of the Pippi Longstocking stories, Astrid Lindgren. Astrid is derived from the…
Maren
Latin
"sea"
Maren is one of the many twenty-first-century takes on Mary--but we find the more classic Marin spelling preferable. When spelled Maren, the pronunciation seems more clearly to resemble Mary, with…
Johan
Scandinavian and Dutch variation of John
"God is gracious"
With Old European vibes, Johan is a variant of the classic John, similar to the Latin, Hebrew, and Germanic forms, Iohannes, Yohanan, and Johannes. Conjuring up the image of the classical composer…
Marie
French variation of Mary
"drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved"
The ubiquitous French version of Mary came into the English-speaking world in the nineteenth century. In the United States, Marie was a huge hit at the turn of the last century and for the ensuing…
Anne
French variation of English Ann and Hebrew Hannah
"grace"
The name of the sainted mother of the Virgin Mary was among the top girls’ names for centuries, in both the original English Ann spelling and the French Anne. Both left the Top 100 around 1970 but…
Bjorn
Swedish, Icelandic, German
"bear"
Bjorn is one of the most recognizable Scandinavian names , thanks in large part to tennis great Björn Borg, winner of five consecutive Wimbledon singles titles and six French opens and something of a…
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 ,…
Leif
Swedish; Danish; Norwegian
"heir, descendant"
Leif is one of the most recognizable Scandinavian names , thanks to Icelandic explorer Leif Erikson, and is still one of the best, with a pleasant aural association with the word leaf. Leif Erikson,…
Mihkel
Mihkel is the Estonian form of Michael, a name of Hebrew origin meaning 'who is like God?' This name has been popular in Estonia and other Baltic regions for centuries, representing the localized…
Jaan
Estonian variation of John, Hebrew
"God is gracious"
Estonian translation of John, currently ranking in Estonia's Top 20.
Mikk
Mikk is a masculine name with Estonian and Finnish origins, functioning as a variant of Michael, which derives from the Hebrew question "Who is like God?" This streamlined form maintains the essence…
Eirik
Eirik is a masculine name of Old Norse origin and is a traditional Scandinavian variant of Erik or Eric. The name derives from the elements 'ei' (ever, always) and 'ríkr' (ruler, king, mighty), thus…
Sigrid
Norse
"fair victory"
Sigrid is a distinctly Scandinavian name that is starting to edge out into the wider world, a la cousin Ingrid. Unfortunately, short form Siri is now off the table, but Sigrid is still a possibility.
Guri
Hebrew
"my lion cub"
When considering the playground years, might be too close to gory.