Names That Mean Beautiful

A bright and breezy Scottish name which is little known outside its native land.

Cool and bluesy southern city name chosen by musician-activist Bono for his daughter.

Frilly but undeniably beautiful. The meaning of Mary is uncertain, but theories include "drop of the sea" (from Hebrew roots mar "drop" and yam "sea"); "bitter" (from Hebrew marah "bitterness"); and "beloved" (from the Egyptian root mr).

This handsome Japanese name has dozens of possible meanings, depending on the kanji characters used.

Blended name sometimes heard in the early decades of the twentieth century.

Bello is as handsome as Bella is beautiful, but rarely heard outside the Italian community. With its energetic 'o' ending, it could be ripe for export.

Also a masculine name in Ireland, this name denotes someone with good looks. Sounds like Kyla.

Pretty and unusual.

Bonnie meets Annabel (or Belle, or any other name ending in this sound) in this jaunty modern compound.

Claribel improves on its mother name Clarabelle by distancing itself from the clown and the cow.

A rare but historic English name bestowed upon girls in the 19th century. Fairlight seems to have been particularly popular among baby girls in the Appalachian region of the US. It appeared as a character name in Catherine Mashall's 1967 novel Christy, which was turned into a TV show in 1994.

Hip-swayingly evocative.

Variant of Maribel

Combine the charm of Beau with the strength of Ford and you’ll get Beauford, an attractive French surname waiting to be discovered. The most notable bearer is Beauford Delaney, a modernist painter who participated in the Harlem Renaissance.

This fairly common Korean girls' name counts Korean actress Lee Mi-Yeon and American composer Serra Miyeun Hwang among notable bearers.

Actress Flockhart popularized the C version, but this works, too.

Streamlined and sleek Japanese name with a sweet, fragrant meaning.

This name may be beautiful, and mean beautiful, but is more likely to feel odd and frumpy in an English-speaking country due to the spelling (which connotes an eider-down quilt). If looking for a feminine variation of Eder, we recommend Ederne instead.

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.

Variant of Ayana with international roots.