Writing Names - Girls

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…

Echo

Greek mythology name

"echo or sound"

Echo, the pretty, resonant name of a legendary nymph, was the heroine of Joss Whedon's sci-fi series Dollhouse . Nick Hexum, of the band 311, named his daughter Echo Love. In the Greek myth, Echo was…

Liberty

Word name

Less common than other virtue names, Liberty is nonetheless a name with a long American heritage. Liberty is seeing a level of popularity not seen since the end of the First World War, but its heyday…

Arwen

Literature, Sindarin, Welsh

"noble maiden; fair, blessed"

Best known as the princess of the Elves in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings , Arwen is a fantasy-inspired choice that feels perfectly down to earth. In 2022, it entered the UK Top 400, making it one of…

Ciara

Irish

"little dark one"

Ciara is very popular in Ireland, more familiar here as the Anglicized Kiera or Keira. The uninitiated will tend to pronounce Ciara as the Italian Chiara, a form of Claire—kee-AHR-a or even…

Riona

Irish

"queenly"

We'd opt for Fiona.

Annabel

Scottish variation of Amabel

"loving"

Annabel is a spirited name that embodies quirky British gentility. Appearing in Scotland as early as the twelfth century, where it was a royal name, it also recalls the romantic Edgar Allan Poe poem…

Raine

French

"queen"

Attracted attention as the stepmother of Princess Diana.

Blakesley

English place-name and surname

"dark wolf's wood or clearing"

Blakesley is the name of a village in England, also sometimes found as a surname along with Blakely and Blakeley, turned into a first name for their daughter by reality stars Trista and Ryan Sutter.…

Snow

English word name

There's definitely a cold front of names for winter babies moving in, with Summer, Spring and Autumn giving way to Winter--plus North, January, Frost--and Snow. This name feels brisk, fresh, pure,…

Isadora

Greek

"gift of Isis"

For a long time, Isadora has been overlooked in favor of Isabella, owing perhaps to its association with the tragic modern dancer, Isadora Duncan, or because parents would rather their daughter be a…

Annistyn

Modern variant spelling of Anniston

Ileana

Romanian, from Greek

"torch; shining light"

A trendy and fashionable-sounding Romanian name with rich history. There was a mythical Romanian princess with the name, and it was also a name used by real-life Romanian royalty.

Elizalina

Elizalina is a feminine name that appears to be a creative combination of Elizabeth and names ending with the melodic '-lina' suffix (like Carolina or Angelina). This fusion creates a name that feels…

Anneka

Anneka is a feminine name with Scandinavian and Dutch origins, primarily functioning as a variant of Anna or Annika. In Dutch, it's a diminutive form of Anna, while in Swedish and Finnish contexts,…

Tierney

Irish

"descendent of a lord"

An uncommon Irish-accented surname that seems particularly well suited to a girl. Tierney Sutton is a well-known jazz singer. Tierney, in its original Tiarnach form, was the name of several saints.…

Daenerys

Literary name

Daenerys is yet another girls' name invented by "Game of Thrones" author George R. R. Martin that is beginning to gain some traction in real life. Daenerys was used for 67 baby girls in 2013 while…

Karielle

Combination of Kari and Elle

Kari originated as a short form of either Katherine or Caroline or their relatives such as Karen, Carol, and Carrie, while Elle is a quite popular French name meaning "she".

Nyx

Greek mythology name

"night"

In Greek mythology, Nyx was a powerful goddess and the embodiment of the night, giving this name a dark yet mystical feel. She is often depicted as one of the first deities, an offspring of Chaos who…