Strong Female Names
Updated Sat Dec 02 2023
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Strong female names have a powerful appeal for many parents today. Our favorite short and strong names for girls range from classics like Kate, Eve, and Anna, to cool vintage revivals like Alma, Ida, and Tess, to modern girl names with a punch, like Nico, Rue, and Lux.
Many of the fabulous strong female names on this list have powerful meanings to match. Try Cleo "glory", Veda "wisdom" or Zoya "life". This list includes female names that mean strong or strength, power or powerful, brave or bravery, along with related terms.
Strong female names may be inspiring for a baby girl. They also might appeal to writers seeking strong names for female characters.
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- Maeve
Origin:
IrishMeaning:
"she who intoxicates"Description:
Maeve is a short and sweet name that has become one of the most stylish Irish names for girls in the modern US. Maeve would make an excellent first or middle name choice, with more heft than Mae/May and more modern charm than Mavis.
- Freya
Origin:
NorseMeaning:
"a noble woman"Description:
Freya has long been popular in the U.K. but has only taken off in the US in the last decade, along with the entire category of mythological names. Derived from the Old Norse name Freyja, meaning "Lady, noble woman", Freya is the name of the Norse goddess of love, beauty, and fertility.
- Greer
Origin:
Scottish, contraction of surname Gregor; LatinMeaning:
"alert, watchful"Description:
This attractive Scottish surname choice, has a certain amount of glamour thanks to feisty British-born red-haired forties Academy Award winner Greer Garson, who was born Eileen Evelyn Greer Garson--Greer was her Irish mother's maiden name). Greer was chosen much more recently by Kelsey Grammer for his daughter and by Brooke Shields in the Grier form. As a surname, it's associated with feminist writer/activist Germaine Greer.
- Nova
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"new"Description:
Nova has the feel of both newness, from its meaning, and great energy as an astronomical term for a star that increases suddenly in brightness before fading.
- Emma
Origin:
GermanMeaning:
"universal"Description:
Emma has now been among the top girl names in the United States for several years, claiming the Number 1 crown in 2008 and again from 2015 to 2018 before dropping back to second place.
- Lyra
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"lyre"Description:
Lyra is a name with ancient and celestial roots that's finding new popularity thanks to its starring role in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials series, seen in the movie The Golden Compass. Simple yet unique, Lyra hits the sweet spot between too popular and too unusual.
- Ada
Origin:
German or TurkishMeaning:
"noble, nobility, or island"Description:
Ada is one of the classic baby names for girls that is suddenly super stylish again. A favorite at the end of the nineteenth century, Ada is an alternative to the over-popular Ava. Ada is also part of the trend toward simple, old-fashioned names beginning with a vowel, like Ivy and Ella.
- Quinn
Origin:
IrishMeaning:
"descendant of Conn, chief leader, intelligence"Description:
Quinn is one of the first popular Irish unisex surnames, a strong and attractive choice on the rise for girls but still popular for boys. Quinn was used for about 3000 baby girls and 700 boys in the US last year.
- Juno
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"queen of the heavens; young"Description:
Juno is an ancient name that feels as fresh as if it had been minted, well, not yesterday, but in 2007. Since the release of the popular indie film Juno, this lively but strong Roman goddess name has held new potential as a baby name. Currently in the UK Top 500 and used in The Netherlands too, Juno is on the rise in the US - and is 15 times more popular than it was before the release of the film.
- Mira
Origin:
Latin, Slavic, Arabic, SanskritMeaning:
"admirable; peace; female ruler; ocean"Description:
This name owes its present life to actress Sorvino. Mira and Mirra have an arty aura.
- Nyx
Origin:
Greek mythology nameMeaning:
"night"Description:
In Greek mythology, Nyx was a powerful goddess and the embodiment of the night, but when spoken, its negative meaning can't be ignored.
- Cleo
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"glory"Description:
Cleo, one of the few girls' names to boast the cool-yet-lively o ending, is of course short for Cleopatra, the name of one of the most powerful women in history.
- Anna
Origin:
Variation of Hannah, HebrewMeaning:
"grace"Description:
Anna has become the dominant form of the Ann family, offering a touch of the international to English speakers and a bit more style than the oversimplified Ann or Anne.
- Zoe
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"life"Description:
Zoe is one of those surprising names that has been on the Top 1000 nearly every year since 1880, but it's only since the turn of this century that it's ranked in the Top 100.
- Sage
Origin:
Herb name; LatinMeaning:
"wise"Description:
Sage is an evocatively fragrant herbal name that also connotes wisdom, giving it a double advantage. It entered the Top 1000 at about the same time for both genders in the early 1990s, but it has pulled ahead for the girls. Toni Collette named her daughter Sage Florence.
- Asha
Origin:
Sanskrit; SwahiliMeaning:
"hope; life"Description:
Asha is an Indian name that comes from the Sanskrit word for hope or desire, but it is also a Swahili name derived from Aisha, meaning life. Since the ascendance of Ashley through the 1980s and 90s, all baby names Ash-related have been used in the U.S. for both girls and boys, from Ashlyn to Ashby, Ashton to Asher. Despite its separate roots, Asha is part of this group.
- Vera
Origin:
RussianMeaning:
"faith"Description:
Vera was the height of fashion in 1910, then was for a long time difficult to picture embroidered on a baby blanket. Now, though, it has come back into style along with other old-fashioned simple names such as Ada and Iris.
- Nina
Origin:
Short form of names that end in -ninaDescription:
Nina is as multiethnic as you can get: Nina is a common nickname name in Spain and Russia, a Babylonian goddess of the oceans, and an Incan goddess of fire. Here and now, it's a stylish possibility that's been underused. "Weird Al" Yankovic chose this decidedly nonweird name for his daughter.
- Jade
Origin:
SpanishMeaning:
"stone of the side"Description:
As a precious stone, Jade is known for its cool green hues, its importance in Chinese art, and its ability to transmit wisdom, confidence, and clarity. As a name however, Jade is a 90’s throwback in the UK, a Number 1 choice in France, and a returning gem in the US right now.
- Sloane
Origin:
IrishMeaning:
"raider"Description:
Sloane is a sleek, sophisticated surname name that has gradually morphed over to the girls' side. With its distinctive and intriguing sound, Sloane has been in the US Top 1000 since 2009, and in 2022, it made its first appearance in the UK charts, jumping more than 400 places in a single year.