Names ending in a

Edison's middle name is a fabulous option for parents looking for something with history and a soft sound. This could be the name you're looking for if you like Tesla's scientific pedigree but think that it has become too corporate with the advent of Elon Musk's company.

Marietta would make for a classy and uncommon long form for cool nickname Etta.

Intriguing derivation, though people will assume it's a simplified form of Maura.

Deriving from the same East Asian root as Malaysia and Malay, Malaya is a name that recalls the more popular Maya and the name of 2014 Nobel Peace Laureate Malala Yousafzai. It first appeared in the US Top 1000 in 2006.

This punchy little name, reminiscent of Latin Io, has a whimsical and beautiful fable behind it. According to legend, the Cornish saint Ia was an Irish princess who sailed across the sea to Cornwall on a leaf. She was martyred and buried at the spot where the church of St Ives (called Porth Ia - "St Ia’s cove" - in Cornish) now stands. EE-ah is the Cornish pronunciation, but EYE-ah is also accepted.

Pretty and unusual, Livana may find a lot more fans as parents look for alternatives to Number 1 Olivia. Livana was used for only seven baby girls in the US last year.

Commonly used in Russia, has an Old World Slavic feel. The original Galen can be used for girls as well as boys.

This traditional Germanic name hasn't been on the U.S. list since 1958, but perhaps due to the mythic power of painter Frida Kahlo, parents are beginning to show some interest in it.

More unusual alternative to Tiara.

Crisanta, while not related to Christine, would make a pretty and highly unusual alternative to that tried-and-true name. Because of its relationship to the chrysanthemum, the flower of the month of November, it's one of the recommended names for Scorpio babies as well as names for November babies. Crisanta might also give you a fresh route to nicknames like Cris, Crissy, or Cristie.

Akiva has a distinguished scholarly pedigree and a lovely meaning. Its softer sound is very on trend for masculine names at the moment and is in line with more familiar monikers like Ezra, Elijah and Theo.

One of the most popular names in Scandinavia, Freja--or Freyja--was a major deity of Norse paganism. Beautiful, blonde and blue-eyed, she was the goddess of love, beauty and fertility. In the US, the name is most likely spelled Freya.

Interesting multi-cultural option.

A euphonious and lovely name with a dark-eyed, long-flowing-haired image, Raphaela is, like Gabriella and Isabella, beginning to be drawn into the American mainstream.

The Latin names for girls Florentina may be the most feminissima and flowery of the 'Flor" names. Another option would be Fiorentina, though you can also downshift to Flora or Florence.

This chic Ukrainian form of Helen is relatively unknown outside of its native country, but it definitely has international appeal. Olia or Olenka are the usual Ukrainian diminutives, but tomboyish Oli or Leni could work too.

In the New Testament this was exclaimed by those around Jesus when he first entered Jerusalem. An exuberant choice!

In mythology, Iphigenia was sacrificed by her father, Agamemnon -- a difficult legacy to pass on to a daughter, and only one reason the name is hardly ever used.