Latin Names

Pleasingly quaint and dainty New Testament possibility; the nickname Dru modernizes it.

More modern and alluring than Silver, Argenta is one of the few mineral/metal-related names.

Rising boys' name could cross the gender line.

Cyrille is a unisex French name, and its association with the suddenly suave Cyril has turned from a liability into an advantage.

Name that's virtually unknown here but has a lovely meaning and a simple sound and spelling.

This ancient feminine form is the kind of name your child will grow into...at least by her fiftieth birthday.

Saint Germain, the intellectual center of Paris, lends the name a creative aura. But most Americans would say jer-mayn. The Latin Germanus may mean sprout or bud, or brother.

Not as common as brother Sergio, but still quite frequently heard in the Hispanic community, as in Bolivian singer Sergia Llanos.

The daintiest and most accessible of the many Q names for a fifth child, now used for girls situated anywhere in the birth order.

Quirina is the feminine form of Quirinus, the name of the Sabine god of war. This is one mythological name that has not traveled to the modern world -- we've found no babies ever name Quirina or Quirinus in the US -- but with this newly-trendy class of names, anything is possible.

Most parents looking for an ancient Roman name would probably prefer something less generic, like, say, MAGNUS or CLAUDIUS.

Columba is an early saint's name that rhumbas to a modern beat. While the original St. Columba is male, the name sounds more appropriate for a girl in the modern world. Leave variations Colm and Callum for the boys.

The names may sound the same, but they have different origins and meanings. Take your pick.

Dashing and highly unusual variation does the feminine original one better by sounding both more modern and more usable. Or you can spell it Monaco and call it a place name.

Rather imperious as a baby name, but has an interesting history. Imperia is the name of an obscure French saint, also known as Impère and Impérie, also borne by the famous Italian courtesan Imperia Cognati. Honoré de Balzac later used it in his short story La belle Impéria (1832), where it belongs to a fictional courtesan. A similar name, Bel-imperia, was used by Elizabethan dramatist Thomas Kyd for a character in his play The Spanish Tragedy.

A rarely heard ancient Latin names for girls that has a not-so-appealing brand name feel. Try Alba instead.

Gala makes the name more festive.

Has a sweetness via its relation to such words as dulcet; other similar possibilities are DULCE, DULCINA, and the down-home DULCIE. Though this Latin names for girls is rarely heard in contemporary times in this form, Dulcie is found.