Unique Girl Names

Aurora

Latin

"dawn"

The goddess name Aurora has consistently been on the US popularity list since the nineteenth century, but has really taken off in the past 30 years. Aurora also enjoys remarkable international…

Hadley

English

"heather field"

Hadley, most famous as the name of Ernest Hemingway's first wife, is more sophisticated, professional, and modern than cousins Harley, Haley, or Hayden. The hit book The Paris Wife , a novel by Paula…

Olive

English, from Latin, nature name

"olive tree"

Though greatly overshadowed by the trendy Olivia, Olive has a quiet, subtle appeal of its own -- and is now enjoying a remarkable comeback. Olive is one of only four girl names starting with O on the…

Arabella

Latin, Scottish

"yielding to prayer; lovable"

Arabella, lovely and elegant, has long been well used in Britain and finally made it onto the American list in 2005. A Top 50 choice in the UK, in the US in remains in the Top 300, given to around…

Octavia

Latin

"eighth"

Octavia began as the Latin, then Victorian name for an eighth child. While there aren't many eighth children anymore, this ancient Roman name has real possibilities as a substitute for the overused…

Harlow

English surname

"rock hill or army hill"

Jean Harlow (born Harlean Carpenter), the original platinum blonde bombshell, was a symbol of 1930s glamour, a factor that first Patricia Arquette and then Nicole Richie and Joel Madden probably had…

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…

Saoirse

Irish

"liberty"

Before the young Irish actress Saoirse Ronan made her mark in the films Ladybird and The Lovely Bones , few of us had heard this name, let alone known how to pronounce it. But now it is slowly way…

Alba

Latin, Germanic, Spanish , Italian., "white, light; elf; dawn"

"white, light; elf; dawn"

Bright, lively, and multicultural, Alba has the vintage mellowness of Alma but spirited feel of Ebba, Phoebe, and Pippa too. Derived from multiple different sources, a recent year saw it appear as a…

Imogen

Celtic

"maiden"

Imogen has long been fashionable in England and is gaining favor in the US among stylish parents. Pronounced the British way — the initial i is short as in Kim, as is the final E as in Ken — Imogen…