Names Every Disney Fan Should Know

Mike Tyson put a twist on his own name by naming a son Miguel. It's the first name of Cervantes, the great Spanish novelist and poet who wrote Don Quixote.

A sleek, literary alternative to Eleanor, this stripped back form of Eleanor is a well-established spelling. It notably appears in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, borne by Elinor Dashwood, along with George Eliot's Middlemarch and Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind , as a middle name.

A Disney name—Nala was the friend who became the wife of Simba, hero of The Lion King. It debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2015.

The classic strong-yet-friendly nickname name, much used for charming movie characters.

Tiana gained a lot of popularity after Disney bestowed this pretty name upon its first African-American princess. Although it has declined in usage over recent years, Tiana’s connections to dainty Tatiana, Christiana and Bastiana should see it in continued usage for a while to come. Read more about Tiana and other Disney Princess Names in our featured blog.

Although we prefer Drew to the old Raggedy Andy, Andy has overtaken Drew as a name in its own right. About twice as many baby boys are named Andy, just Andy -- though about eight times as many parents go with the full Andrew.

Emile is a masculine name of French origin, derived from the Roman family name Aemilius, which comes from the Latin word 'aemulus' meaning 'rival' or 'emulating'. Popular throughout France and French-speaking regions, Emile has a distinguished literary connection through French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau's influential work 'Émile, or On Education'. The name has a sophisticated European flair while remaining straightforward to pronounce and spell in many languages. Though never reaching extreme popularity in English-speaking countries, Emile maintains steady usage as a classic choice with intellectual associations. Notable bearers include French author Émile Zola and French painter Émile Bernard.

Judy was the nickname of choice for almost all the Judiths born in the 1940s and 50s; today's little Judiths are much more likely to be called Judith -- or, possibly, Jude.

While Woodrow is too forbidding, its nickname Woody is a bit cartoonish, as in Woody Woodpecker and the animated cowboy character in Toy Story. Woody also has a slang meaning that no teenage boy will thank you for. Woody Allen was born Allen.

A Shakespearean invention for an abandoned baby in The Winter's Tale, Perdita's sense of loss has always been off-putting to parents. But her image was somewhat resuscitated by its association with the appealing canine character in Disney's One Hundred and One Dalmations.

Creative choice, evoking the high-kicking can-can girls and other colorful figures in the works of Toulouse-Lautrec.

Peaked in the 1940s, but still an amiable classic, a la Joe and Tom -- though rarely used on its own.

This classic yet poetic Italian name for boys, is a Top 50 choice in its native Italy, and has been climbing up the charts in the US and the UK too. It had sporadically made the US charts throughout the 20th century, but it has been consistently present since 2009.

Jessie has never been used as much as Jennie/Jenny, partly because it's a boys’ name as well (spelled Jesse), but it does have a friendly and unpretentious pioneer feel. In Scotland, it's found as an Anglicized form of Teasagh, itself a form of Jean, and is used as a full name. And in the rest of the world, Jessie may be short for Jessica or used on its own.

Rapunzel is famous as the long-haired heroine of the fairy tale, locked in a tower only to fall in love with a handsome prince who climbed to her side via her hair. Rapunzel has never been widely used as a first name the way, say, Aurora -- the mortal name of Sleeping Beauty -- has. Like Cinderella, it's too closely identified with the fairy tale to really take off as a girls' name. In German, it's the name of several varieties of wild-growing, edible leaves. Read more about Rapunzel and other Disney Princess Names in our featured blog.

Medieval name without much of a future.

This tiny but punchy name has multiple origins. It stands strong alone, but could be short for numerous names including Bonnie and Bodhi. In Mandarin Chinese, Bo means "wave".

Hiro is an apt name for a hero of the show Heroes -- and for our times. Widely used in Japan, sometimes also for girls. Hiroshi is a long form.

Archimedes of Syracuse was a famous Ancient Greek thinker, especially in the fields of mathematics and sciences. He made important contributions to geometry and calculus. His name was a perfect choice, meaning "master planner" or "master thinker".

Olaf, though sainted and regal in Norway, is slightly oafish here. It is one of those names that has become completely familiar in the U.S. without ever becoming assimilated. Now that he's a comical character in Disney's Frozen, he might get some more attention.