EALDGYTH

EATHSWITH

EDGIVA

Effie is the old-fashioned short form for Euphemia. It shares a vintage charm with Hattie and Letty although is much rarer than either. Effie is a character in The Hunger Games and Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

Effie

A sweet, simple mini-name that fits into many cultures. The only drawback is the potential for confusion with Ella, Ayla, and other similar names.

Elena is at its most popular point ever in the US, thanks to its cross-cultural appeal and the overall popularity of El- names. It's more international than Ellen or Eleanor, but still accessible.
 A pan-European version of Helen, Elena has roots in Spanish, Italian, Slavic, and Romanian, among other languages. Helen, the name from which it derives, came from the Greek word helene, meaning "torch." Alternate spellings include Elaina, Ellena, and Alena.
 
Elena may be trending, but she's also a solid classic as well as an international favorite. Elena ranks highly in France, Italy, Germany, and Spain along with a host of other countries. 
A worthy namesake is Elena Kagan, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, the fourth female to hold that position. Pseudonymous Italian writer Elena Ferrante, author of the Neapolitan Novels, is another famous Elena. 
 
A fictional bearer is Elena Gilbert, protagonist of The Vampire Diaries. and Elena Lincoln is a character in Fifty Shades of Grey. Elena of Avalor is a princess featured in the Disney Junior show of that name. 
 
Read more about Elena and other <a href="https://nameberry.com/blog/disney-princess-names">Disney Princess Names</a> in our featured blog.

Elena

The name of the mother of Aethelred the Unready was once common among the Anglo-Saxon nobility, and was briefly revived during the 19th century, only to be lost once again to history. 

However, with the recent revival of Frida and other clunky-cool vintage gems like Agatha, Matilda and Theodora, we think this ancient option could be worth a second look. 

And how cute would a baby Elfie be?

Elfrida

ELGIN

Elicia

ELIZAETHA

Although they could be easily confused, Elsbeth is a fairly unusual contracted German version of Elizabeth, while cousin Elspeth hails from Scotland. With its 'beth' ending, Elsbeth feels closer to the mother name.

Elsbeth

EMLIANE

Emmeline is an Emma relative and Emily cousin that is destined for greater use in the wake of the megapopularity of those two names. A recommended Nameberry fave, Emmeline hopped onto the US Top 1000 in 2014 for the first time ever. While it is genuinely an old name, it was rarely used a century ago; only 17 baby girls were named Emmeline in 1915, the same number as were named Ernie!
 A popular medieval name, Emmeline was introduced to Britain by the Normans. It appeared as a character in Uncle Tom's Cabin, and is famous in Britain as the name of the illustrious suffragette, Emmeline Pankhurst. Way back in 1980, it was the name of young Brooke Shields's innocent character in The Blue Lagoon. More recently, Emmeline Vance was a witch in the Harry Potter series.
 Christian Bale has a daughter named Emmeline.

Emmeline

ENGLETRON

EREMBOURG

Ermengard

ERMESINDE

EUPHROSYNE

EUSTACHE

Experience was used by the Puritans but probably too joke-worthy for a modern child...or teenager. 

Experience

FREZWITH

GEERTRUID

GERBERGA

GERLOC

GERSENDA

GETHA

The French variation of Giselle was made famous by the spectacular Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.

Gisele

GLISMODE

GODGIFU

GORMFLAITH

Although Gracia is the literal Spanish translation of Grace and is used as the Grace equivalent in Spanish-speaking countries, where it's pronounced grah-see-a, it's also a long-time if unusual Grace variation pronounced gray-sha.  You might consider Gracia if Grace is getting too commonplace for you.

Gracia

GUISLE

GUNDRED

GUNNILD

GUNNOR

GUNNORA

Gwladys

HAUDRE

HAWISE

An ancient German saint's name – and most famously the name of Harry Potter's snowy owl – but the combination of "head" plus "wig" feels a little too literal in English.

Hedwig

HELIE

HERLEVE

HERSENT

HESILIA

HEXTILDA

HILDEBRANTE

Hildegarde

HILLEGONT

HILTRUDE

HULS

IDOINE

Ingeborg (and all Germanic and Scandinavian names beginning with Ing-) references the ancient fertility god Ing. Ing, later known as Freyr, is one of the primary gods in Old Norse mythology.

Ingeborg

INGEGARD

IRMENTRUDEOF

With Isabel getting so popular, parents are searching for new varieties of the name, and Isabeau is one that makes a lovely French twist. 
 Isabeau of Bavaria was the wife of King Charles VI of France--and it was possibly a nickname for Elisabeth. It is also the name of an opera by Pietro Mascagni, a retelling of the medieval English legend of Lady Godiva, and in the 1985 film Ladyhawke, Michelle Pfeiffer plays the heroine, Lady Isabeau d'Arjou, who assumes the form of a hawk during the day.

Isabeau

Now that Tristan has been rediscovered, maybe it's time for his fabled lover in the Arthurian romances and Wagnerian opera, a beautiful Irish princess, to be brought back into the light as well. 
 This would make an artistic and romantic choice, as the medieval heroine is seen as a symbol of undying love. 
 In Marilyn French's novel The Women's Room, the character Isolde is nicknamed Iso. Isolde is currently a Top 500 name in the Netherlands. Variations include Iseult, Isolt, Isoud, Isolda and Yseult.

Isolde

NerdyNamer's list "Unusual Female Names From My Genealogy E-I" of 56 great name ideas: EALDGYTH - Isolde!

Unusual Female Names From My Genealogy E-I

Interesting and unusual names from the female side of my family tree from 602-1983 E-I