Unique Cat Names

A pretty, dainty name for one of the little characters in the children's book series The Borrowers. It was the basis for a later Studio Ghible animated film, The Secret World of Arrietty. While the connection to Harriet is tenuous, you might want to consider Arrietty as an honorific for an ancestral Harriet, Harry, or even Henry or Henrietta.

One of the many El- names for boys that boomed in the 1910s and 1920s, but has long been out of fashion. This surname/place name has an aristocratic flavor, and a creative namesake in the artist Ellsworth Kelly. Polar explorer Lincoln Ellsworth also gives it an adventurous connection.

The popular cosmetics brand Maybelline inspires at least a few baby girls' names each year. Company founder Thomas Lyle Williams created the name as a portmanteau of Mabel and Vaseline after watching his sister Mabel mix up a quasi-eyeshadow out of coal dust and Vaseline.

This lively pet name has recently been associated with Mexican-born Kenyan actress Lupita Nyong'o, acclaimed for her role in the 2013 film Twelve Years a Slave.

The mother name Guadalupe, literally "valley of the wolves," relates to Our Lady of Guadalupe, revered in Latino culture as a protector of the Mexican people.

Jovan, the name of the supreme Roman deity, seems more extraterrestrial now -- and it's also firmly attached to a perfume label. Some parents may see it as a variation of Giovanni, the Italian for John. It is in fact the Slavic variation of John and may be an original way to honor an ancestral John.

Another name for Jupiter, king of the Roman gods, this jovial name is eminently ready for modern use. Feminine variations include Jovita and Jovie.

Remember, the Muse is passive: someone else's inspiration.

When playwright Thomas Lanier Williams adopted the pen name of Tennessee, he created a new possibility among American place-names, although it's admittedly a bit bulky in size.

Not unless you want your son to grow up to be just like a wacky Jack Black character.

This name of the glamorous mean girl in "High School Musical" is a euphonic spin on the dog breed Shar Pei, a brilliant name joke skewering the practice of picking a name for its sound without considering what it means. Other examples: Cliche, Hooker.

A charming -o name with cool nickname possibilities, Ramiro is also a historical choice: there were 2 Aragonese Spanish kings named Ramiro.

Unless it runs in your family, or Alexander Hamilton is your particular hero, you might consider something less imposing -- and without the teasable nickname Ham.

An undiscovered patronymic surname, Gibson blends the cool, rugged feel of names like Bridger, Riggs, and Hudson with the clunky charm of names like Gilbert, Wilbur, and Digby. Associated with the popular brand of guitars, it could make an unexpected, music-related option.

Great Irish middle name choice for Shakespeare lovers.

Could be the next Nova, now that celestial baby names are in the ascendent.

This herb is also known as cilantro. It's meaning, "bed bug" is on account of its smell, characterized by the ancient Greeks as bed bug-like.

Frisco is a frisky, roguish semi-place-name (San Francisco natives never call it that) that could make a lively, unusual o-ending choice.

Stormi is like Sunni, with angst. If naming your child Storm or Stormy is asking for trouble, naming her Stormi -- as Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott did -- is asking for trouble of several different kinds. But we're sure she'll be adorable and as celebrity baby names go, this one is nearly normal.

Dua is one of those names that has been popularized in English speaking countries by a single celebrity: British-Albanian model-singer Dua Lipa. It's simple, modern, appealing, and may find a wider audience thanks to its attractive namesake.