Names That Mean Land

More distinctive than Grace and more creative than Presley, Graceland is a contemporary name that could catch on with parents searching for a unique honorific.

The name of an English county and noble title, Somerset is also found as a surname and occasionally as a given name. The English writer (William) Somerset Maugham is a notable bearer.

There are two lovely Portlands, in Maine and Oregon, but not many babies with their name.

A place and surname turned first name, as in aviator Cortlandt F. Bishop and four-star general Cortlandt V. R. Schuyler. Cortlandt was a village near modern-day Wijk bij Duurstede, Netherlands. Its name was derived from the Dutch elements cort, meaning "short" or "narrow," and landt, "land."

Columbia is a rarely used name with many associations. From the eighteenth century it has been used as a female personification of the United States, often appearing as a flag-draped patriotic figure. And as such it's inspired a plethora of place and company names, from the District of Columbia to Columbia University to Columbia Records, and songs like "Columbia, Gem of the Ocean." A character called Columbia appears in The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Whether you consider it a word name or a spelling variation of Armie, this name maintains its meaning. Jill Wagner used it for her daughter in 2020.

Lans is the Dutch variation of the German name Lanzo, which is also the origin of Lance.

A fun, unexpected way to honor your home state or a Mary in your life. As geographical girl names such as Ireland, Scotland, and Oakland slowly rise up the charts, Maryland could be a future favorite.

Referring to the ancient region of Nairi and its breathtaking landscape, Nayiri is a gender-neutral name in Armenia.

Ibiza — a Spanish island in the Mediterranean Sea — stems from the Arabic word Yabisah, meaning "land".

This footwear brand name feels useable for a boy — maybe to honor a Tim or a Kimberly.

This rare name is possibly a Romani version of William, or may derive from Old English elements meaning "wife" or "woman" and "land".

Also spelled Illtud or Eltut, his was the name of a 6th-century Welsh saint who founded the abbey of Llanilltud in Glamorgan. Illtyd Harrington was a British politician. The Welsh LL is pronounced like a palatalized TH sound in English.

Iceland is a futuristic place name that works as well for babies as Ireland. We predict it's going to be one of the top baby names of 2050, along with other girl names that end in land, such as Scotland, Graceland, and Zealand.

A surname with a lot of "juice," as they say, in Hollywood. In addition to veteran character actor Oliver Platt, there's La La Land producer Marc Platt and his actor son, Ben Platt, who won a Tony for Best Actor as the star of Broadway smash Dear Evan Hansen.

Some will see this as spirited, others stuffy. The protagonist of the Edith Wharton novel The Age of Innocence was a popular and successful lawyer named Newbold Archer.

Maryland appeared on the charts as a male name before a female one, but these days it's all girl.

The most prominent person with this unusual geographical choice might be actor Cuba Gooding Jr., however, Cuba has a far longer history as a feminine name. Deriving from the island in the Caribbean Sea, it had a brief spell of popularity in the US at the end of the 1890s, when Spain lost possession of the island during the Spanish-American War. Used predominantly (though rarely) on girls throughout the last century, it has occasionally been given to a handful of boys too

Fashion icon and Vogue editor-in-chief Diana Vreeland adds an air of glamour to her distinctive Dutch surname. It would make a striking name for the daughter of a parent in the fashion industry.

As patriotic as a name can be.