Norse Baby Names - girl

Thea is a diminutive of names ending in -thea, including Dorothea, Althea, and Anthea. It is also the Anglicized spelling of Theia, the Titan of sight, goddess of light, and mother of the moon. She was the consort of Hyperion, and mother of Helios, Selene, and Eos.

Tindra is a new name in Sweden, used only since the 1980s, that has become enormously popular: It's in the Top 60 there. And while unknown in the US, Tindra certainly has possibilities as a substitute for the flagging Kendra.

Tora is the female version of Tor or Thor, the name of the Norse god of thunder. Actress Jeanne Tripplehorn chose it for her daughter.

Tove is a modern variation of an Old Norse name, related to Thor. Tuva is a form of the name popular in modern Scandinavia.

High profile supermodel/entrepreneur Tyra Banks has put this name in the spotlight, endowing it with her confident, superattractive image.

Another astral name, this one relating to one of the largest and brightest stars in the heavens, is popular in Scandinavia and Spain, where it ranks among the Top 50 girls' names. Although still very rare in the US, we think it has serious potential to follow the likes of Luna and Lyra up the charts.

Unusual name associated with gorgeous Swedish-Norwegian single-named model.

Vera was the height of fashion in 1910, then was for a long time difficult to picture embroidered on a baby blanket. Now, though, it has come back into style along with other old-fashioned simple names such as Ada and Iris.

Wilhelmina was long burdened with the Old Dutch cleanser image of thick blond braids and clunky wooden clogs, but that started to be changed somewhat by the dynamic Vanessa Williams character on Ugly Betty, and even further by the choice of Wilhelmina by ace baby namers Natalie and Taylor Hanson. For the less adventurous, Willa is, for now, still a more user-friendly female equivalent of William.

Ylva may look like it belongs with the Eva family of names, but it actually derives from Ulf, a name meaning "wolf." It's not a very intuitive name to English-speakers, and likely won't get picked up in the US anytime soon. At last count, it was only given to five American baby girls.