Names That Are Variations

Fun fact: Marion was the birth name of movie star John Wayne. Although commonly thought of as a female name today, it was actually more popular for boys until the late 19th century, and was given to roughly equal numbers of boys and girls throughout the 1970s-2000s.

Aurelie is the delicate French variation of Aurelia, one of the most improbable popular names of recent years. Both versions of the name are lovely, but it might be difficult to insist that Americans pronounce Aurelie the attractive French way rather than like plain old orally.

This strong yet graceful feminine form of Gabriel is a modern favorite. The double L spelling is given to more than three times as many girls as the Gabriela version.

This Scottish form of Thomas has a lot of charm, evoking images of men in plaid kilts playing the bagpipes. As for the 'ish' ending, it could either be seen as cozy and hamish, or a little wishy-washyish.

While Charlotte and Caroline are considered stylish and classic members of the Charles family, this somewhat severe Germanic form is fading. It reached its apex at Number 76 in 1965.

Mads is a perennial favorite in Germany, the Nordic countries, and the Netherlands, where it is usually to be found in the Top 50. Just remember the D is not pronounced. Famous bearers include Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen, the villain of the Bond film "Casino Royale".

This variation of Brinley is currently the most popular of the plethora of alterative spellings. Ranking in the US Top 300 and given to 1200 girls in 2023, it is twice as popular as the traditional Brinley.

Kade is a prime example of the new trend for substituting K's at the beginning of traditionally C-starting names.

While Skylar is currently the most popular spelling choice for girls - and the spelling seen most often - the Skyler option is more (statistically) unisex. Given to boy and girls in nearly equal numbers each year, it ranks around the middle of the US Top 1000 and is given to more than 400 boys every year.

Though the y in this variation may seem unnecessary, it hasn't prevented Mariyah from charting in the US Top 1000 for the last decade.

A feminine name heard most often in the Hispanic community. Surprisingly, Lorena was on the US Top 1000 list of girls' names for an impressive 130 years, from 1880 until falling off in 2011. We do not predict an imminent return.

Shaun is the least popular spelling of the once-wildly popular name, more usually spelled Sean or Shawn. Parents who have a reason to choose this name now would (and should) most likely go with the original Sean. Alternate spelling Shawn is four times more popular.
Shaun (and Shawn) were considered the feminized spelling of the name back when it was becoming a unisex name in the early 1970s. In all spellings, Sean has become once again decidedly masculine.

A huge name in the late 90's and most of the 00's, Kaitlyn's been on a downward trend in recent years. Kaitlyn and its soundalikes have been so well used in the US that they can no longer be seen as fresh, but it's still relatively popular in Canada.

Common in Holland, the appealing Willem (as in de Kooning and Dafoe) makes William fresh and distinctive.

Once an obscure, surname-inspired option, Payton (and Peyton) hiked up the charts back in the 90s, likely inspired by the football star Peyton Manning.

Reon is a fairly rare name, getting just a few dozen uses each year in the US, UK and New Zealand. The name Reon has two possible origins. It could be an alternative spelling of the Celtic name Rion, meaning king, or could be a name deriving from the Maori word 'reo' meaning language. Either way, given the popularity of other "eon" names like Leon, Gideon, Simeon and even Napoleon, Reon is a name that deserves some further consideration.

Nicolette is the ultra-feminine name of an enchanting princess in the medieval French romance, Aucassin et Nicolette, a name that got stacks of publicity in the heyday of Desperate Housewives and its star Nicolette Sheridan. It was also the name of Chloe Sevigny's character in Big Love.

Regal and ancient feeling, Jacques has been declining in popularity in its native France, but in the UK, it saw a surprising revival in 2022. Jumping from somewhere around the #2500 mark straight to #600, it was seven times more popular than in 2021.

Simple and pretty and user-friendly, the Welsh Sian was used by U2's Dave "the Edge" Evans for his daughter. In Welsh, it is also spelled Siân.

While not as popular as the Ariel spelling of Little Mermaid fame, this rendition has achieved popularity in its own right.