Once Upon a Time Baby Names

Savia is a very old Italian [feminine singular] word name meaning "wise." It was a medieval augural name, and the masculine form is Savio. It also happens to mean “tree sap” in Spanish. It is not a name that has been used in the U.S. Sabia comes from the Irish mythology name Sadb, meaning “sweet” in Gaelic. It is also sometimes regarded as another form of the name Sabina, whose meaning (the closest we can guess) is “of one’s own kind.”  Sabine and Sabina are quite well known, with the saints of their name, ancient Roman town and the story of its women to give them historical credibility. Sabine was first seen on 5 girls in the U.S. in 1916, until 2007 when it was finally given to more than 100 girls in a year, but it is hovering now, with 94 girls in 2017. Sabina was more popular and was used since before 1880 and consistently afterward, but now it was given 94 times last year as well. Sabia, on the other hand, was only used 5 times in 1996 and 5 times in 2007. I have inc...

Iskra : a Croatian, Russian and Polish girl name meaning “spark,” it is seeing the light of day in the U.S. thanks to body-positive model Iskra Lawrence. It was also the name of a newspaper founded by Lenin in 1900. The name is still not listed in U.S. statistics. Ingram : this name came to England from the Normans, and it likely means “Ing’s raven” or comes from the ancient Germanic tribe known as the Angles, combined with hraben , meaning “raven.” Listed in the U.S. starting in 1883, it has always been extremely rare, and was only given to 10 boys in 2017. Gram could make an easy nickname. Jacoba : everyone seems to love Jacob, but not as much love is given to Jacoba and Jacobina. Jacoba, always rare in the U.S., was used since 1900 and given to 5 girls in 2017. Jacobia was used only in 1991 and 1992, 5 times each, and Jacobina seems to have not been used at all. Jackdaw : this is a bird name, and one not usually seen among other bird name lists. It is one of few birds able to im...

Alastriona (ah-lah-STREE-nah, al-iss-TREE-nah) is the Irish version of the Greek girls name Alexandra, meaning "defender of man." It is just a bit different from Alasdair/Alastair, the form of Alexander. Many might be intimidated by the Irish spelling, but a simple explanation that the O is silent would clear things up, or you could use the Anglicized spelling Alastrina. This is an extremely rare name in the U. S.  with no data  Her native nickname is Triona (TREE-nah), but I don't see why other nicknames wouldn't work in the U. S. like Aliss, Listy, Lass, Allie, or even Alina/Lina. Ailstreena is the Manx form.

Say it isn't so! This drop-dead gorgeous name is so rare it was only given to 6 girls in 1998, and that's it. And yes, she's legit. As is the case with Katherine/Catherine, Katriana is another option, both a variant spelling of Catriona. Catriona is the Irish and Scottish way to spell Catrina, from Katherine, meaning "pure." Catriona is pronounced kuh-TREE-nah. Caitria is another version of the name used in Ireland. Catriana can be found at least once in a published work -  The Celtic Monthly . What isn't so clear is the intended pronunciation of Catriana. Did someone see Catriona in Ireland and mistake the pronunciation for kah-tree-ON-uh, then take the name elsewhere as Catriana (kah-tree-AH-nah)? Is it just a case of name typo? Or down another path, did someone first intend it as a different spelling for Catrina, independently of Catriona? Similar events led to the family of Caterina/Catarina, Catherina/Catharina, Cathryn/Kathryn etc. If you take a look...

Brianda is a Spanish feminization of the Gaelic boy's name Brian. Brian, and possibly Briana, made his way to Spain during Christian religious wars, where he may have been "Briandus," which was found as early as 1282 if not earlier. It has also seen some use in Italy. Briana, used in 1590 by Edmund Spenser for The Faerie Queene,  is a more common variant of Brian today, which means "high, noble." Brianda has been found in real use as early as 1487 in Spain, and 1250 in France (where Briande de Septeme was noted as the wife of Guillaume de Beauvoir) in the Regesta comitum sabaudiae . Brianda became much more common in the 1500's. Similar-sounding Brianza is an Italian place name that could work well for place-name lovers. Two namesakes for Brianda include Azorean (Portugal) Brianda Pereira, who became a popular heroine figure in the late 19th century and may be a mostly mythical figure associated with the Battle of Salga, and Brianda Domecq, a Spanish-Mex...

Galt is a boy's name meaning "wild boar" in Old Norse and Old English. Galton is a separate name, and the meaning "steep wooded land" is unsubstantiated. In Old Norse it began use as a nickname, a reference to someone who used the strength or ferocity of a wild boar in battle. The name also has a place in Old Gaelic - used to refer to someone from Gaul, meaning "foreigner," and therefore a surname of separate origins (but still one that started as a nickname). Gault is another form of the surname, which has a connection to the Norwegian word gald , meaning "hard/high ground," and it is the name of the archaeological clay formation Gault. If you follow little  breadcrumbs  there's a bit more interesting info connecting the Gaelic name with the Scandinavian one and adding in a possible Viking and Huguenot twist. As for namesakes, there may only be one with Galt as a given name: musician Galt MacDermot. But with the last name, there is Sir...

If you like Kit on a boy, don't like Christopher as a full name, and don't want Kit as a stand-alone name, then Kitterick is for you. This Irish surname, sometimes found as Ketrick or Mac Kitterick, comes from MacShitric, meaning "son of Sitric." Sitric was not native, it came from the Norse name Sigtrygg, meaning "true victory." How did this Scandinavian name get over to Ireland? Well, perhaps it had something to do with Sigtrygg Silkbeard, King of Dublin somewhere around AD 989 to 1000. His reign was so important that he was written about in  both the 12th-century Irish  Cogadh Gaedhil re Gallaibh  and the 13th century Icelandic  Njal's Saga . Before Mr. Silkbeard there was   Sitric Cáech, a Viking who ruled Dublin and Northumbria in the 10th century. His son, grandson and great-grandson also became rulers. Kit  itself is not a popular choice, probably because a formal name is more desired. In 2015 only 40 boys were named Kit (and 28 girls), 10 boy...

Carrick is an Anglicised spelling of creag (sometimes spelled carraig ), the Gaelic word for "rock." As a surname it is not that uncommon, but as a place name it is very common - over fifteen places in Ireland bear the name in some form. There's even a city named Carrick in both Cornwall and Scotland, and a couple in the U.S. and Australia. It can also be seen as a title: Earl of Carrick, from Scotland. Donnchadh (Duncan), Earl of Carrick was a prince and magnate who died in 1250. After being held prisoner by King Henry II of England for some ten years, he returned home with permission to rule over Carrick, but not all of Galloway. Marjorie of Carrick, who was likely Donnchadh's granddaughter, was born just three years after his death, and she was the mother of Robert the Bruce. In 2015 Carrick was given to 26 U.S. boys, which is a slight decrease from the past few years, but still a good rise in popularity from when it was just starting out in the 1970's. Ca...

While Kieran seems to be all the rage lately, no one pays attention to the Cornish version of the name, meaning "little black one." Pieran is the same as Kieran because of the rule of language making the Gaelic "k" a "p" in Cymric. A transcription of Piran, sometimes written Perran, or even Perrian and Pierrian, this is the patron saint of miners and of Cornwall. The name is basically unheard of, unused in the U.S. Some locations bear this name in Cornwall. Saint Piran died c. 480 after being an abbot, with possible Irish roots. He is linked to the Irish saint Ciaran of Saigir. His legend starts with being thrown over a cliff into the sea tied to a boulder. He calms the sea and floats to safety in Cornwall, becomes a hermit with great qualities so he is gifted the ability to perform miracles. Then he made the Abbey of Lanpiran with his followers and helped the community perfect the art of tin-smelting. His flag is a white cross on a black background, oft...

Katia Winter as Katrina Crane  Catrina was only used 11 times in 2015, a dramatic drop from its 1980 peak of 454 births. The spelling Katrina is always more popular, lurking just off the top 1000 with 215 births in 2015. Katrina also peaked in 1980 with 3,397 births. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 negatively impacted the popularity of both spelling options, but usage was already decreasing. The original spelling, Catriona (pronounced the same, kuh-TREE-nah) was used 17 times in 2015. It is the Gaelic form of Katherine, and "pure" is the accepted meaning. Cat, Trina, Rini, Caty/Katy and Kiki have all been used as nicknames. Most recently the name Katrina has been used in the TV show Sleepy Hollow , which began airing in 2013. The character Katrina Crane is played by Katia Winter.

Rohan (for boys) and Rohana (for girls) mean "to ascend" in Sanskrit. It is pronounced ROW-han in Sanskrit, however, some say this is an alternate or a French spelling of the Anglicized Irish name Rowan, meaning "red-haired," and the pronunciation for that would be closer to RO-an. Currently #601 in the U.S., Rohan was given to 419 boys in 2013. It is used less since the mid-2000's and not at all before 1969. Rohana, on the other hand, is strictly a Hindi name and only started being used around 2006 and was only given to 5 girls in 2013 - a dramatic difference. As a boys name it is also doing well in England and Wales. Rohan Kanhai, a cricket player, made this a household name in the Caribbean (and there are four more cricket players named Rohan). Film maker Rohan Fernando, Bob Marley's son Rohan Marley, and actor Rohan Chand all share the name. Rohan is also a place name used in  The Lord of the Rings , a real French place name, a role-play game "R...

Quillan, France Quillan has two accurate pronunciations: KILL-an and KWILL-an. As an Irish Gaelic boys name pronounced the first way shown it means "cub," or "holly," from quileann . As a variation on the English word name quill, pronounced the second way, it refers to the feather of a bird. Either way, Quillan fits right in with all of the popular names ending with an n. Quillan also happens to be a town in France that is quite picturesque, as you can see above. As far as namesakes go, Quillan Roberts is a Canadian soccer player, Quillan Isidore is a BMX racer, and Quillan Nagel is a poker player, but none are very well known. In fiction, The Quillan Games is a book by D. J. MacHale, and there is a Star Wars character named Quillan. Spelled Quillan the name has only been given to boys in the U.S. since about 1982, and although it is now given every year (before 2000 it was given sparingly) it is still incredibly rare - only 9 boys received the name in 2...

Like  Tannen , Oren is a very subtle winter or Christmas name. From Hebrew, Oren means "pine tree," and it is the word for orange in Welsh. Oren is also very close to the names Orin and Oran (Odhran) - Gaelic, meaning "pale green." Spelled Orrin it is both a place name and a Scottish name meaning "pale-skinned," but also in Scottish the spelling Oran means "song."  Ören  is a  Turkish  word meaning "ruins" and is used as a surname and place name. Oren  has been used in the Old Testament and on several modern, not very well known namesakes, both as a first and last name. The Hebrew version is regularly used in Israel. In 2013 there were 108 boys given the name Oren in the U.S., and it hasn't been used so much since the 1920's but it has been used steadily since 1880. Orin was given a bit less in 2013 with only 64 boys, while Orrin was an equally popular spelling with 62 boys. Oran was only given to 20 boys the same year. Bein...

Connelly is a name you will find much more often as a last name (Jennifer Connelly, for instance) rather than a baby name, but lately it has been used for both boys and girls, likely because it fits in with such names as Connor, Colin, Cassidy, Kennedy, Delaney and Ainsley. For girls specifically, it can be seen as a modern update to Colleen. Since it originated as a surname,  Ó Conghalaigh ,  it is considered unisex. Some experts claim Connelly (KON-ell-ee) is an Irish Gaelic name meaning "valiant hound/wolf," from con and gal , while others say it means "love," from the word conal. I believe neither of these translations are modern. If we take a look at Connor, which means "dog/wolf lover" from  Conchobhar, and Conall, which means "strong wolf," and Conley, which means "chaste fire," then the likely meaning of Connelly is "valiant wolf." As a last name, there are just under 30,000 people in the U.S. with this name. As a...

  Reagan, the Anglicized form of the Irish surname meaning "descendant of  Ríagán ," can be used for both boys and girls. The related name may mean "impulsive," or "like a king." Most people may still associate this name with Ronald Reagan, the 40th U.S. president, and therefore consider it boys-only. Regan is another common Western spelling. Although the more traditional pronunciation is REE-gan, most modern Americans say RAY-gen. This Gaelic name was first used for girls thanks to William Shakespeare, for his character in "King Lear," who was an untrustworthy princess. However, the name didn't become widely used for girls until the late 20th century. The name could have been propelled by a few different things, one of which was Linda Blair's character Regan McNeil in the 1971 film Exorcist . Reagan Gomez-Preston is an American actress. In 2012 Reagan ranked at #97 on the U.S. top 1000, taking only a decade to jump up more than 8...

Ferelith Young Ferelith is an intriguing name that seemingly did not survive the medieval period, although a quick search online will reveal it is still used today, albeit rarely, thanks to a revival in the 19th century. Ferelith Ramsay is a prime example of that revival, as is the novel Ferelith written by Victor Hay, who named his own daughter Ferelith (Rosemary Constance Ferelith) a year later. Ferelith Young, the actress pictured above, seems to be the most well known contemporary namesake, while Anne Ferelith Fenella Bowes-Lyon aka Princess Anne of Denmark is another widely known namesake, yet Ferelith is her first middle name. Ferelith can also be spelled  Forbhlaith, the Gaelic way, and in which case Ferelith the Countess of Atholl is another namesake. Not much is written about this Ferelith, nor her sister Isabella, nor Ferelith's daughter Ada. While Ferelith married a knight, her sister married an important man of Scotland for the times, which was sometime around 1211...

  Tobin (TOH-bihn) is a Hebrew name meaning "God is good" as a variation of Tobias, but it is also an English surname derived from Tobias, and an Irish surname, brought over by the Norman surname St. Aubyn (Latinized as de St. Albino), from the town of Aubyn in France. It also comes with the desired nickname Toby, but can also have the nickname Binx. Both Toby and Tobias were used in Medieval times, but Toby was used more often until the Reformation. Tobia/h and Tobit are alternate forms. Saint Aubin d'Angers (Aubyn, Albinus) was Bishop of Angers in 529 and was known for his generosity and caring for those who would otherwise be looked down upon, such as slaves, orphans, and widows. His feast day is March 1st. There have been many places named after him, including dozens in France. The names Albinus, Aubin and Aubyn are from the Latin alba , meaning "white." There have been a range of namesakes over the years, including Tobin Dax from Star Trek DS9, 1950...

  Lorcan is an Irish Gaelic name meaning "little fierce one" or just "fierce," that comes with an equally rare, and very magical, nickname - Lore. Depending on your accent or what region or country you're from, Lorcan may be pronounced LOR-kan, the second syllable as in "can do," or LOR-kuhn, the second syllable as in "country." There is a possibility the name originated as a nickname for people who were brave warriors. Lorcan mac Lachtna was the grandfather of  Brian  Boru, the last high king of Ireland. Brian was a national hero, while Lorcan was  the first of his tribe to become king of Dál Cais. Lorcan's son Cineadh of Munster was known for improving the geneology of the kings of Munster.  Saint Lorcan (Anglicized as Saint Laurence) O'Toole, Archbishop of Dublin during the time of the Norman Invasion. He is patron saint of Dublin. Coincidentally (or maybe not), Irish born actor Peter O'Toole named his son Lorcan. A fe...

Beircheart (bar-hart, bear-hart, and bear-kart) is an Old English and Irish baby name most people have forgotten about. It looks a bit like bear + heart or birch + heart, especially when you say it out loud phonetically (BEAR-chart). It means "[of the] intelligent army; bright army" and has roots in Anglo-Saxon, also commonly used in Irish. In a few sources, a Latin name is given: Berichertus. Benjamin has been used as an Anglicized form of Beircheart. However, Benjamin is Hebrew, meaning "son of the right hand ." The two names are unrelated, from different origins. It is most likely the two sounded similar, therefore Benjamin was the easiest available Anglicization. There was a Saint Beircheart of Tullylease in Ireland, who was a disciple of Saint Patrick, and in some works Saint Patrick's right hand man is known as Benen. Benen is thought to be Irish for Benjamin. I can't say for sure that Beircheart and Benen from the stories are the same person. Sain...

What kind of name can compete with Eponine? Any literary name can work, for girls and boys, but Monroe has the right contemporary feel for a boy, just as a random suggestion. While a lot of parents consider Monroe for a girl, most likely with Marilyn Monroe in mind, Monroe's vibe is very masculine. It falls into a few different categories: "modern hero" names (both for the 5th American president and Marilyn), surnames, and nature names. It even falls under the comic book category - Ororo Monroe was Storm's real name in the X-Men. Most recently, Monroe can be seen as a male character in the TV show Grimm, and was used by Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon for the female twin of their son Moroccan. This Gaelic name is composed of the elements moine (marsh) and ruadh (red), translating to "[from the] red marsh" and once applied to people living near the mouth of a river, with the meaning "[from the] mouth of the Roe River." Alternate spellings have been...