Names That Are Variations

This phonetic spelling of Quetzalli — a rare and lovely Nahuatl name, which literally means "quetzal feather" after the quetzal bird — was given to around the same number of baby girls as the original in 2022 (a few dozen).

This feminine form of Jean was most popular in the 1930s in its home country, and in the 1960s in the US. It's fallen off the Top 1000 list since, but perhaps cute retro nickname Jeannie could tempt some vintage-loving parents back.

Notably borne by Faustin Soulouque, a 19th-century president, and later emperor, of Haiti.

Oceania is one of the most elaborate of the trending Ocean-related names. Oceania also refers to the area of the world including Australia and neighboring islands.

Livelier Latin form of Edmund.

About 60 girls were named Alise in the US last year, making it an uncommon but not truly rare name. While it's pretty and intriguing as a spin on the very popular Alice, it's pronounced more like Elise or -- in Latvian -- Elisa, and so may prove more confusing than it's worth. If you want to name your daughter Alice, name her Alice, and if you want to name her Elise, name her Elise. Choosing Alise in many ways gives you the worst of all worlds.

Taru is both the Finnish word for "epic," making it a translation of the Swedish name Saga, and a pet form of Tarja, the Finnish form of Daria.

Mottel, also spelled Motl or Motel, was once a common Yiddish name in Ashkenazi Jewish communities. It's never been recorded on the US charts, but the feminine variation, Mattel, is beginning to rise in religious families.

The form of Faruq most common in Turkey. Ömer Faruk is a popular double-barreled first name for Turkish boys.

A favorite in Brazil, with the z adding extra zest.

Has a nice flamenco flavor.

Intriguing David alternative, though American tongues will have trouble wrapping themselves around three vowels in a row.

Friendly and charming international variation of Matthew, common in Estonia.

Santa has an appealing sound, or maybe that's sleigh bells we hear? It's difficult to separate the Italian girls' name Santa from the association to Mr. Claus, king of Christmas. The German diminutive Senta -- or Snow or even Christmas -- might be an easier name to handle.

Hava is an anglicization of the Hebrew name Chava, which, like its English form Eve, means "life". In some accents, it may sound like "have a", so it's worth considering if this will be an issue combined with a last name. But overall, it's an elegantly simple name with a great meaning.

Incredibly handsome and super smooth, Duarte sounds like it came straight out of a romance novel. You almost wouldn’t believe it’s derived from Edward.

Gelila is a beautiful Ethiopian name that may have two different origins — some sources cite the name as a variation of the Biblical place Galilee, meaning rolling hills. Others view the name as a variation of Biblical Delilah. Whichever way, Gelila is a gorgeous name that would work well in the English-speaking world. The name Gelila is also worn by Ethiopian model Gelila Bekele, former longtime girlfriend of actor and filmmaker Tyler Perry with whom she shares a son.

Deriving from "Lilian", as an elaborate form of the flower name, "Lily", Lilianna is a clean and polished spelling for those wanting the pronunciation Lily-Ann-uh.

There are 15 times as many baby boys named Brett than Bret, but this sleeker version is used and has some merits, namely, being sleeker.

This fairly obscure saint's name was chosen by Oscar-winning actress Marcia Gay Harden for one of her twins.