Once Upon a Time Baby Names

Windy : a name that has occasionally been a variant of Wendy, but most often a word name in the English language. It is considered a 70’s name because it peaked in 1975, dropping down to just 7 girls in 2017. Warrick : this name comes from the place name Warwick, or Warwickshire, meaning “dam settlement.” There are several namesakes for Warrick both as a given name and a surname. Xanthippe : a name that hasn’t been used in the U.S., Xanthippe means “yellow horse” in Greek. Most people will not be aware that she was the wife of Socrates. Xenon : this is a chemical element that would make an edgy baby name and fit right in with other X names and boy names ending in -n. It is a noble gas found in our atmosphere and is atomic number 54. Yanella : this is the Hispanic form of Janella, which ultimately comes from Jane, meaning “god is gracious.” This spelling hasn’t been used in the U.S. but Yanela, Yaneli, Yanelis, Yaneliz, Yanelle, Yanellie and Yanelly have been. York : a town since...

Tacita : this Latin name means “silent, secret,” and was given to the nymph Lara after Jupiter was cruel and cut out her tongue. Tacitus is the masculine, used as a Roman cognomen, and found on the Roman historian Cornelius Tacitus. The names are pronounced TASS-ih-tuh and TASS-it-uss. The names Tacy and Tace derive from the root word taceo as well, and could make fitting nicknames. Talarican (tah-LAR-ih-kan), Tarkin (TAR-kin), and Tarquin (TAR-kwin): while Talarican stands out as the name of a Pictish bishop and saint, Tarquin is the English variant of Latin masculine name Tarquinius, which was a famous Roman gens used by the kings of Rome. The etymology is unknown.  Tarquin is the only spelling that has been used in the U.S., since 1987, and only rarely.  Uriana : this may be a female form of Urian, meaning “privileged birth,” from Welsh masculine name Urien.  Urien was a legendary Welsh figure who featured in Arthurian Romances. Uriana has only been used ...

Magali : this girl name is probably a Provence diminutive of Margaret, meaning “pearl,” or according to French sites it derives from Magdalene, meaning “tower.” Magaly and Magalie have been seen as alternate spelling options. Magali has been used in the U.S. since 1950 and was given to 53 girls in 2017. (Mah-gah-LEE and MAH-gah-lee seem to be both accurate pronunciations.) Marduk : a god of healing in ancient Babylon whose name means “bull calf of the sun god Utu.” A simpler meaning is “solar calf.” He could use magic and was given some of his power by an older god, Ea. Marduk has not been used in the U.S. Nigella : usually said to be the female variant of Nigel, Nigella actually comes from the Late Latin word nigellus , meaning “blackish.” And although most of the world is familiar with chef Nigella Lawson, the name still is not used in the U.S. Nicander : from Greek Nikandros, meaning “victorious man.” One of the first people with this name was a 2nd century BCE scholar. Being so...

Desdemona by Theodore Chasseriau Desdemona (dez-deh-MOH-nah) is an English literary name meaning "ill-fated." William Shakespeare used the name in Othello, but the play was based on the story Un Capitano Moro which was in Giovanni Battista Giraldi's Gli Hecatommithi, where the name was spelled Disdemona, from the Greek word dysdaimonia . It has never been a terribly popular name because of the character, who is murdered by her husband, and the name's meaning. However, Desdemona has been a character name in several other works of fiction since, including the Midnighters trilogy by Scott Westerfeld, the book Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, and Jimmy Buffet's Where is Joe Merchant? Desdemona also features in two other plays - Toni Morrison's Desdemona , and Paula Vogel's Desdemona: A Play about a Handkerchief . It's also been used for four songs, is a moon of Uranus, and an asteroid demonically named 666 Desdemona. Desdemona Mazza was an Italian s...

Sibylla Palmifera by Dante Gabriel Rossetti Sibyl, from Greek sibylla , meaning "prophetess," was originally a word referring to one of the ten female oracles, and they were so mystically respected that even in early Christian theology their gifts were highly regarded, or at least intriguing, and Sibyl began being used as a given name in the Middle Ages. Sibyl also comes with a delightful list of variants, each quite beautiful. The spelling Cybil/Cybill has been used, as well as English Sybella and sometimes versions starting with a Z, such as Zibylla. Both Sibylle and Sybille have been used in France, Sibylla in Sweden, Sybille and Sibylle in German, Sibylla in Greek, Sibilla in Italian, Sybill a in Late Roman, Sébire   in Norman, and my favorite - Sibyllina, as in Blessed Sibyllina Biscossi (although she may have been known as Sibila, Sibilina or Sybil). This name has not ranked in the U.S. since 1929. In 2016 it was only given to 19 baby girls. Sybella was give...

Greek, meaning "lover of flowers." This is also a moth in the genus Cosmopterigidae family, and the name was used in a novel by Eilis O'Neal titled The False Princess . As a given name it has been used every now and then. Philanthea is an alternate option. Nicknames for Philantha could include Fanny/Phanny, Filly/Philly, Fanna/Phanna, Lanthy or Anthy.

Gennadius II Gennady has a striking similarity to Kennedy, which is a popular unisex name in the U.S. Gennady, alternatively spelled Gennadiy, Gennadi, and Genndy, and  Геннадий   in Russian . This Russian boy's name comes from Gennadius, the name from Greek gennados , meaning "noble, generous." In Bulgarian and Georgian the name is spelled Genadi, while it is Ghenadie in Romanian. None of these are used in the U.S. Saint Gennadius was a martyr from Constantinople, the 21st Ecumenical Patriarch of that ancient city. He was born around the same time as Gennadius of Marseilles, the 5th century priest and historian who was called Gennadius Scholasticus. Perhaps ironically, there was later a man known as Gennadius Scholarius who was a Byzantine theologian and philosopher. There was also 7th century Gennadius II, a Byzantine general. In the 400's there was politician Gennadius Avienus. In the 9th century there was a Bishop named Gennadius of Astorga. Genndy Tart...

Damiana herb Damiana (dah-mee-AH-nah) is a girl's baby name meaning "to tame" in Greek, making it the female version of Damian. It was given to 22 girls in 2016, and although it has been used since 1915, the most it was ever given was 33 times in a year, making it very rare. This is a little hard to believe considering the popularity of Damian, which currently sits pretty at #123, with Damien at #279. Damia (DAH-mee-uh) is another girl's option, except she was a Greek nature goddess - a "Hora," which meant a season personified. Damia is used a little bit more, given to 40 girls in 2016, but she's only been used since 1971. In Greek, Damia comes from da , "earth," and maia , "nursing mother." Damia was another name for the goddess Demeter. Damia is a place in Jordan, the stage name of Marie-Louise Damien, and a 1992 novel by Anne McCaffrey. Damiana is a plant, Turnera diffusa, with pretty yellow blooms. It is native to Texas,...

Napoleon III, Eugenie, and their Son for Adoption Siamese Ambassadors , by Jean-Leon Gerome Eugene is a boy's baby name of Greek origin, coming from the word eugenes , meaning "well-born," as in "noble." In my little corner of the world this name was regarded the same way the character Eustace acted in C. S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia - a bit of a dweeb, a dated name, and very annoying. But there is always more to a person than meets the eye, and name judgement can be unnecessarily harsh. That is why I was thrilled to hear the love interest's real name in Disney's Tangled (2010) animated film: he goes by Flynn Rider, but he reveals his birth name Eugene. He expressed a sort of embarrasement that his name was Eugene, much the same way actor Jim Carrey did when revealing his middle name was Eugene. While Flynn went from almost rare and 81 boys given the name in 2010, to 212 the next year and still rising, Rider only went up a little bit and...

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...

This baby name was invented by the Hungarian author  Mór Jókai for a character in his novel The Golden Man  ( Az Arany Ember ), which was published in 1873. Timea (TEE-may-uh) was taken from the Old Greek name Euthymia, meaning "sweet-natured," and is not to be confused with Timaeus, meaning "honor" in Greek, because the feminine there would be Timaea (or Timaia, Timmia, or Timmea depending on what time period and namer).  Most real-life namesakes are famous in sports, like Swiss pro tennis player Timea Bacsinszky. The U.S. only has records to show for this name starting in 1996, when Timea was given to 6 girls. Since then it had not been given to more than 12 girls in a year, and by 2016 it was down to only 5 girls.

The Gemma Augustea Onyx (ON-iks) is a tricky name. People often think it's a name they can't use, but for what reason? Raw onyx is anywhere from a golden-beige to smoky black. Polished onyx is usually shiny black and can be made into a wide variety of jewelry pieces. A banded variety of the mineral chalcedony, it's sibling is the agate stone and the only difference between them is which way their bands run. Sardonyx is the beautiful red variety of onyx, which was used by Roman warriors to represent Mars, the god of war, but you can find yellow, blue and green shades too. While onyx is Latin, it ultimately comes from Greek word meaning "nail" or "claw." Historically it has been used since ancient times for ornamental carvings, cameos, bowls, and other works of art. It's also mentioned in the Bible. Elsewhere, Onyx was used as the name of a planet in the novel Halo: Ghosts of Onyx , as a comic book character from the DC Universe, is the na...

The U.S. top 1000 baby names and extended list is here (thank you Social Security Administration!), and my priority is picking out the gems from the very bottom of that list. While Emma and Noah are the current rulers of popularity, names like Cassiana, Euphemia and Faustine were only given to 5 baby girls into 2016, and Pippin and Lonan only given to 5 boys in 2016. In this post I'll talk about names that really stood out, and legitimate names at the very bottom of the barrel. One thing I noticed right away was a large amount of boy names ending in -iel at the bottom of the list (5 boys in 2016). The letter Y had four - Yaciel, Yassiel, Yekusiel, and Yatniel. There was also Remiel, Raniel, Lexiel, Keriel, Joxiel, Joriel, Jazziel, Jaydiel, Ithiel, Eddiel, Doniel, Deriel, Azariel, Audiel, Andiel, Alexiel and Avriel. For girls, I noticed the Brazilian (and Venezuelan?) -y ending on popular girl's names: Gabrielly, Isabelly, and so on. I also noticed a decline in Renesmee ...

Yes, Anaxandra is a real name. Some pronounce it ann-ax-ANN-druh, while others say ann-uh-ZAN-druh. This Greek female name is a great example of an ancient woman who was very accomplished. Anaxandra was the daughter of Nealkes, who painted mythological scenes in ancient Greece, and she was also his student. She lived around 228 B.C. and was mentioned by Clement of Alexandria (2nd century) in his work Women as Well as Men Capable of Perfection . She was also important enough that the International Astronomical Union named a crater of Venus after her. This is also a literary name, used by Caroline B Cooney in her novel Goddess of Yesterday . There are no girls in the U.S. given the name Anaxandra.

 Byblia ilithyia butterfly Ilithyia (ill-ITH-ee-uh), or Eileithyia, comes from  Εἰλείθυια (Eleuthia),  which could be Pre-Greek in origin. The spelling Ilithyia is the Latinized form of Eleuthia and may have first been used by Horace, and Eileithyia is the Greek form, and she is also sometimes refered to as Elysia. She was the Greek goddess of childbirth and midwifery, and her name means "to bring," or "to come," making her The Bringer . On a related note, some research into etymology points to Elysia meaning "to come" as well, and not necessarily the meanings like "blissful" or "joyous" that have been recorded in the past. Elionia may have been another name of hers - she was worshiped at Argos as a goddess of birth. Elithyia has been recorded as a simpler spelling of Eileithyia. Zeus and Hera were her parents. She is also likely the same as Eileithyia, a Minoan goddess that was slightly older. Eileithyia/Ilithyia was written abo...

A quince is a bright yellow fruit from a small deciduous tree, the only member of the Cydonia genus Rosaceae which also contains most edible fruits such as apples, cherries and pears, as well as almonds and ornamental trees like roses. In Greek the quince is called Kydonia malon, and Kydonia was also an ancient city-state now known as Khania. Legend says Kydonia was founded by Cydon - the son of Hermes and Akakallis, daughter of King Minos. One would think, being a fruit name, that Quince would be more popular as a girls name - yet it is really only given to boys. Maybe that's because Shakespeare used it as a character name for a carpenter, Peter Quince, in A Midsummer Night's Dream . Or possibly because of Quince Duncan, a novelist from Costa Rica. It is also the Spanish word for the number fifteen. There were 11 boys given the name in 2013, the most it was given since 1985, then down to 5 boys in 2016, and no girls were ever given the name (at least not more than 4 in a...

Coral is one of those names that everyone knows, yet no one really uses. When is the last time you actually met one? While Coral saw 199 births in 2015, it is not in the top 1000 - even though it has so much to offer. Your first introduction may have been to coral reefs (marine invertebrates) or the precious coral gems made out of the underwater living "bushes." There's also the color coral, given in reference to the polished material. Coral jewelry has been used as far back as the ancient Egyptians and then some. It had great popularity in Victorian times, which may have been when the name started being used in modern times. The U.S. records specifically for names started in 1880, and we know Coral was being used at that time, which was just before the end of the Victorian period. Coral comes from Greek korallion , given to mean a shade of red. It could mean "small stone" in Semitic. Elaborate versions of Coral include Coraline, Coralie, and Coralia. Co...

www.learnaboutbutterflies.com The girl's baby name Castalia  ( Κασταλια) is pronounced kah-STAH-lia, and/or KASS-tah-lee-uh. She  was a nymph, daughter of the river Achelous, who gave her name to the Castalian Spring near Delphi, Greece - home of the prophetic Oracle of Delphi. According to some legends she married the King of Delphi (possibly King Delphus who gave his name to the city) and had a son with him, who was named Castalius. According to other legends, she became the Castalian Spring itself by diving into the fountain at the foot of Mount Parnassus after being pursued romantically by the god Apollo. Now she is a muse who inspires poetic genius to those who touch her waters, and the other muses are sometimes called Castalides, or it is used as their surname or collective name, because they are associated with this spring. 'Castalian' is now a word, meaning "pertaining to Castalia, fountain of Parnassus." Virginia Woolf used this name for a char...

Kyria, the unisex Kyrie and the boy's name Kyrian are variants of the Greek girl's name Kyra, which currently ranks at #401 (in decline). They each mean "lord" in Greek but have a connection to ancient Persian and Egyptian in which they referred to the sun god Ra. The Greeks connected their word for lord to the Persian name for king, Kourosh (equivalent to Cyrus and possibly Cyril), which meant "throne." Several Persian kings were named Cyrus. In Egyptian, Ki-Ra meant "like Ra," or like the sun. There is no ancient connection to the word valkyrie, although if you were to name a daughter Valkyrie there is no sound reason to not nickname her Kyrie. Kyria (KEER-ee-uh, and less often KY-ree-uh) is a variant of the popular girl's name Kyra. The spelling Kyria specifically means "noblewoman, respectable lady" and has been a Greek title of respect for women, much like "madam" or "miss." Kyrios was the male version of t...

  Orphée   by Jean Baptiste Camille Corot Orpheus (or-FEE-us), from Greek mythology, has a sad but beautiful story. His name means "darkness," which is befitting for his tragic story, yet I see him as a role model. The legendary musician, poet and prophet was the founder of Orphism, a religious belief revering those who went to Hades and lived to tell the tale - Persephone was one such person. But Orpheus is most known for going into the underworld with the goal of returning his beloved wife to the land of the living. With his music he was able to convince Hades to let his wife, Eurydice, come back to the land of the living with him. Hades agreed as long as Orpheus led her out without looking back to see her - and Orpheus was able to do so until he reached the last part of their journey, Eurydice still partially in the underworld. Because she was not completely out of the underworld, Orpheus was not able to save her. Orpheus was also well known for being one of the Argon...