State name Alaska stems from an Aleutian word for the land mass itself. The number of baby girls named Alaska has doubled in the past five years, and is sure to continue increasing as more place names are annexed as <a href="https://nameberry.com">baby names</a>. Wilder but as habitable as Dakota or Cheyenne, Alaska is a <a href="https://nameberry.com/girl-names">girls' name</a> choice for the future.

Alaska

Albin is a modern form of the ancient Roman Albinus or Albus, meaning white or bright. There was a Saint Albinus who was also known as Aubin. In the contemporary world, Albin is popular in Sweden and ripe for export as a simple, unusual name with deep history.

Albin

While the male Alva or Alvah relates directly to the minor Biblical character, the female version is more likely an Anglicized form of the Irish name Ailbhe. Best known as Thomas Edison's middle name, Alva has true unisex roots. 

Alva

Old-school Italian name that could find new fans thanks to singer Adele, who chose it for her son after months of baby name mystery.  Angelo is in the same name category as Rocco, the name of Madonna's son, and may get a fresh coat of cool.

Angelo

Popular in India and among Indo-Americans, this name of the hero of a famous Hindu epic has an extremely pleasing sound. 
 Arjun is based on Arjuna, who was in Indian legend the son of the king of gods, close friend of Lord Krishna, and considered the greatest warrior on earth. Arjun is one of the best-known and widely-used <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/540/hindi-names-for-boys">Hindi names for boys</a>.

Arjun

Avaro

Derived from the Scottish Gaelic bàn, meaning "white, fair". It's also a name in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Elvish language, in which it means "beautiful".

Bain

Unusual and attractive entry to the growing Irish name canon. 

Banan

Pretty and unusual translation of Bella. 

Belia

Unlike the feminine Blanca, this name for some reason seems to put more emphasis on the "blank" aspect. 

Blanco

The famous Battle of the Boyne, in Ireland, vanquished the Catholic king. 

Boyne

One of the loveliest of the <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/172/welsh-names">Welsh names</a>, 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 femininity.

Bronwyn

Blaec

A short form that is given on its own to a good number of baby girls each year — Cali has been on trend in recent years along with sister names Callie and Kali, as the popular 90s and early 2000s nickname Allie has felt less fresh.

The Cali spelling in particular also brings to mind the sunny state of California and all of the beachy imagery that follows.

Cali

Celtic goddess of poetry, though less-than-poetic name. 

Ceridwen

One of the rarer names to come from the Bible, Cherith has a fresh and modern sound despite its ancient roots. Cherith was the name of the stream that kept Elijah alive during the three years' drought which he announced to King Ahab. 
In English, Cherith pleasingly reminds one of the word cherish which is another plus to this underused girls' name.

Cherith

Cilla

This presidential name is in style limbo today - or, some might say, in the the sweet spot of familiar but little-used.

Dwight

This feminine version of the Basque name Edur is quite well used in Spain, where it has often been in the Top 100. Plus it offers some great nickname options such as Eddie or Deedee. One of the <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/89/winter-baby-names">names for winter babies</a> that's off the snowy track.

Edurne

This Welsh nature name that can be pronounced exactly like the male Ira. Or, to avoid confusion, you could just name her Snow. 

Eira

Fiona entered the American consciousness with the opening of the 1954 Broadway musical Brigadoon, but didn't come onto the U.S. popularity list until 1990.
 
Fiona is the best known of a group of related Gaelic names, which is ironic because it's the only one without genuine traditional roots — it was found first in James Macpherson's Ossianic poems and then popularized in the late nineteenth century as a feminine pseudonym for William Sharp, a Scottish male writer. <a href="https://twitter.com/HJosephineGiles/status/1555216419721297922">Some researchers believe</a> that Fiona Macleod was Sharp's identity as a trans woman.
 
Its recent spike in popularity owes much to singer Fiona Apple and also possibly to Princess Fiona in Shrek. In fact, there have been numerous Fionas on the big and small screens, from The Thorn Birds to Josie and the Pussycats, Four Weddings and a Funeral to Nurse Jackie to Shameless.
 
Jennie Garth and Chad Lowe have daughters named Fiona. It's also Julia Roberts' middle name.
 
If you're looking for something more authentic, consider Fionnuala.

Fiona

Gavin, a name with Scottish roots, has stepped into the spotlight, replacing the dated Kevin, thanks in part to pop-rock sensation Gavin DeGraw and Bush lead singer Gavin Rossdale. 
 Gavin also has made literary appearances in J.M. Barrie's The Little Minister and in William Faulkner's Snopes family trilogy. In the form Gawain, he was one of the Knights of King Arthur's Round Table.
 Gavin entered the ranks in the 1950's and climbed as high as Number 30, in 2008, before dropping a bit on the charts.

Gavin

Gavino

Has been used on its own since the 1920s, but still seems like only part of a name. Was very much tied to mid-century Italian sexpot Gina Lollobrigida.

Gina

Glade

Gunn

A male name in Wales, Gwyn has been mostly feminine in the US thanks to its resemblance to the more familiar Gwen. It derives from the same Celtic root as the popular Finn family of names.

Gwyn

Irvin is an Old Man name that has an uncertain future.  Losing the final g in Irving makes the name slightly less dated -- but just slightly.  There's something about the 'erv' sound that makes Irvin and brothers feel unappealing. 

Irvin

A simple and charismatic Chinese and Korean name, also spelled Joon.

More common for girls in Japan, thanks to the prevalence of the related name Keiko.

Kenyon is a very engaging British surname name, the middle y giving it a kind of southwestern canyonesque undertone.
 Though Kenyon appears in English records as far back as the fourteenth century and arrived in America in the seventeenth, it sounds cooler these days than the more traditional Kenneth. Kenyon has literary ties to the prestigious journal The Kenyon Review, originating from Ohio's Kenyon College, and sports enthusiasts will recognize it as the name of basketball star Kenyon Martin (nicknamed K-Mart), the first pick of the 2000 NBA draft, who plays for the LA Clippers.

Kenyon

Pretty and unusual, Livana may find a lot more fans as parents look for alternatives to Number 1 Olivia. Livana was used for only seven baby girls in the US last year.

Livana

Lotus is one of the most languorous of the flower names, with intriguing significance in both Buddhism and Hinduism, symbolizing purity, grace and spiritual growth — not to mention a familiar yoga position.
 In ancient Greece, the lotus was a legendary plant, whose fruit was eaten by the mythical lotus eaters, causing them to go into a state of hypnotic forgetfulness.
 Lotus Flower is a Chinese character in the 1931 Pulitzer Prize-winning Pearl S. Buck novel, The Good Earth.
Rain Pryor, daughter of comedian Richard, named her daughter Lotus Marie.

Lotus

Lumi may be a rare <a href="https://nameberry.com/girls-names">girls' name</a> in the USA and England, but it comes in the Top 50 in Finland, where it means snow. Given the popularity of Winter, Holly, Ivy and many other wintery-christmassy names, we think that short and spunky Lumi definitely has potential for greater usage outside its home country as one of the more unusual <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/412/christmas-baby-names">names for Christmas babies</a>.

Lumi

Mineko

Miyuki

Has a pure, clean aura, but is also evocative. 

Neva

Nola, a name with a sleek, enigmatic quality, was used for the much-pursued heroine of Spike Lee's 1986 breakout film, She's Gotta Have It, and again by Woody Allen in Match Point. It's a short form of the traditional Irish name Fionnuala. Nola reentered the US Top 1000 in 2008, for the first time in 50 years.
 
Nola is also a place name of an Italian town, associated by ecclesiastical tradition with the invention of church bells, leading some to give that as the meaning of the name. 
 Speaking of the map, Nola could also come from New Orleans, Louisiana, for which NOLA is a frequent acronym. This association lends the name a potentially Southern feel.

Nola

Officially a shortening of the traditional and tricky Gaelic Fionnghuala/Fionnuala, Nuala makes a lovely choice all on its own. Nuala is well-used in Ireland.

Nuala

Orin is one of a variety of similarly-spelled names that have a soft and sensitive image. The Orrin spelling has been known nationally via Republican Senator Hatch.
 Orin is the name of a character in Eugene O'Neill's drama Mourning Becomes Electra. Oren is a Hebrew name that means laurel while Oran is Irish and means pale little green one.

Orin

This may be a bit quirky to make it as a name, especially in first place.  If you love it, you might try it in the middle.

Quartz

A name with some sterling qualities, most associated with the British currency and silver markets. Sterling has several recent TV associations, with characters Roger Sterling (on Mad Men) and Sterling Archer (on Archer), and actor Sterling K. Brown (on This is Us).

Sterling

Whitman, a namesake surname for poet Walt, would be much more suited to a boy, probably because of that "man" part.  Whit or Witt makes an uplifting short form which can be used on its own.

Whitman

Yesterday's sensation that rose with the popularity of Whitney Houston. Whitney may have lost some of its style value, but it still sounds like one of the quintessential <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/501/english-names-for-girls">English names for girls</a>. Today, you might want to shorten it to cool nickname Whit.

Whitney

Haitian-born rap superstar and humanitarian Wyclef ("Fugees") Jean has lent this name a powerful musical beat. 

Wyclef

Wynn is an attractive Welsh name, originally male but now also used for girls outside of Wales. The authentic feminine version would be Gwen, which derives from the same very productive gwyn element, making it a relative of all Welsh names ending -wyn or -wen, as well as the Irish Fin- names. 

 Wynn is a soft and gentle yet sturdy choice which lends itself to sweet nickname Winnie or Wynnie.

Wynn

An appealing Asian name with a nickname feel. 

Yuki

In the Japanese culture, this name suggests a sense of independence and is one of the popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/577/names-for-december-babies">names for December babies</a>.

Yukio

A possible <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/412/christmas-baby-names">Christmas name</a> for a baby boy, if you find Noel too mundane. But we fear it doesn't sound very festive.

Yule

phoebecl's list "Names related to white/pure" of 49 great name ideas: Alaska - Yule!