Names That Mean Valley

Though it has some distinguished political and tennis world associations, most modern parents would go for the more contemporary sounding Holden. Tilden Park is a beautiful hillside wilderness in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Spelling Camden with a K makes it less of a place name—Camden is a downmarket city in New Jersey and an upmarket area of London—and more of a Kardashian-era confection, or maybe konfection. Both Kamden and Camden are in the Top 500 boys’ names.

Aspen's sibling.

There are 20 times as many baby boys named Camden as baby girls, but only twice as many boys given the Camdyn spelling as girls, making this version a much more gender-neutral choice.

Hopewell feels like it could be a Puritan-era virtue name, but it is actually a habitational surname. It is derived from Hopwell, from the Old English elements hop, meaning "valley," and well, "stream." Hopewell could easily be adapted into a first name, with Hope or Wells as nickname possibilities.

Guadalupe is a river in Spain, the name of which is derived from the Arabic phrase Wad-al-lubb, meaning "hidden river." Alternatively, it may come from a combination of the Arabic word wadi, meaning "valley" or "river," and the Latin lupus, "wolf."

Former traditional male name now in middle-aged limbo, but with a nice naturey meaning to endear it to modern parents. Actress Glenn Close is a famous female bearer.

Like Marvin and Melvin, Sheldon has been perceived as about as far out as you can get, though there are very pretty towns in Devon and Derbyshire that inspired it. Sheldon Lee Cooper is the lead (male) nerd character on the TV hit The Big Bang Theory, giving the name a brainy image. Nickname Shelly is sweet and naturey, in a retro kind of way.

An appealing Hawaiian name which belongs to a town, river and bay on Kauaʻi island in Hawaii. The two possible meanings of the name, "crescent bay" or "garland (lei) valley" both describe the beauty of the place.

Old-timey surname that's been very rarely used.

Variant of Kendall

While actress Glenn Close didn't inspire many parents to give their daughters her name in particular, she did help launch a general trend toward boy names for girls.

This Italian word name, meaning (as you would suspect) valley, has a rolling soft sound to it. The "lay-a" sound also perfectly complements the current fashion for similar names such as Rhea, Layla and May/Mae.

This Cornish surname is rarely used as a given name but could make a great way to honor a Mary in your life.

Underused literary name (as in the poet John) with a -den ending that's very much in style.

The feminine version of the common Welsh name Glyn became somewhat known in this country via the charming Welsh actress Glynis Johns. Variations include Glenys and Glynys. With other Welsh names--Gwyneth, Bronwyn, Bryn, Griffith--now on the American table, Glynis could make a distinctive tribute to an Uncle Glenn.

A sweet and simple nature name that could also be short for the surname name Odell, the vintage name Della, or the obscure saint's name Endellion.

Glyn is a pretty, glimmery name that is heard much less often than Welsh sisters Gwen and Bryn. It is also used for boys and might make a good honor name for an ancestral Glenn.

An appealing Hawaiian name which belongs to a town, river and bay on Kauaʻi island in Hawaii. The two possible meanings of the name, "crescent bay" or "garland (lei) valley" both describe the beauty of the place.

Rarely heard last-name-first choice with nice gardenlike feel.