Pretty & Unusual Girls Names

Simple plus unusual is a winning combination.

Abilene is a rarely used place name, mentioned as such in the New Testament, that combines the cowboy spunk of the Texas city with the midwestern morality of the Kansas town where Dwight D. Eisenhower spent his boyhood. Abilene is a much more untrodden path to the nickname Abbie/Abbie than the Top 10 Abigail.

If Abigail's too popular and Tabitha is too...."Bewitched."

Luxurious and distinctive, with a biblical bacground--although in the Good Book,Adalia is a male.

Perfect name for a Virgo or an Aries baby. It is also the name of a character in the fantasy Belgariad series.

Name of an Old Testament soldier that's been also used as a girls' name in modern Israel. An alternate spelling is Adinah. Some mistake Adina and Adinah to be the root of Dinah, but the Biblical name Dinah is borne by a different figure and has a different meaning. You can consider the modern short forms Dena and Dina as stemming from either Adina or Dinah.

Adira is one of those rare names that's both little-used and simple, and crosses languages easily. Pronounced ah-DEER-ah, Adira is given to only a handful of girls in the US each year and could make a worthy substitute for such overexposed favorites as Ava and Ariana.

A name that would lavish your child with adoration, a princess name--as in Princess Adora of She-Ra: Princess of Power.

A pretty Kazakh name derived from Turkish ayla, meaning "moonlight". The Hawaiian name 'Ailana (with the 'okina mark) means "loving".

Ailsa is a traditional Scottish name for girls related to a rocky island in the Firth of Clyde called Ailsa Craig. It might make an interesting alternative to the outdated Ashley or overly popular Ella, and could also be thought of as a relative of Elizabeth or Elsa.

A popular Japanese name for both sexes that's migrated to the West because of its appearance in manga and video games.

Bright and bold traditionally masculine name used in Israel.

Alair is a lighter, more unusual form of Hilary.

A form of Adelaide (and therefore related to Alice, too) used in the Netherlands. The country's first female physician was Aletta Jacobs. In the USA, Aletta is rare, but on a slight upward trend. It fits perfectly into the sweet spot of being deep-rooted and straightforward, yet barely used, and has Etta and Lettie as potential nicknames.

Alika is a multicultural choice that's far off the beaten track.

Alula, the palindromic name of the first double star to be identified as physically related to its twin, would make the perfect name for a first-born twin. Ideas (we're only half joking) for the second born: Aviva, Aziza, Otto. Alula is reminiscent of the unusual name chosen by Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen for their second daughter: Elula, a month name from the Hebrew calendar.

This fragrant, almond-scented name has hardly been heard in this country, which is a pity--we've loved it since John Malkovich used it for his now grown daughter.

This unjustly neglected floral name has a BBC accent and a Greek mythological heritage: Anthea is an epithet of Hera, the Greek queen of the gods, and her name has been used as poetic symbol of spring.

Anwen is one of the simplest and best of the classic Welsh girls' names, more unusual than Bronwen but with the same serene feel.

Apolline is a luscious French name chic in Paris and ripe for the plucking in the English-speaking world. Derived from the mythological name Apollo, the name may mean strength; Apollo was the god of sun and light. Apolline is a perfect choice for those attracted to the name Apple who don't want to go quite that far.