Day Names for Babies

Thursday is named after the god Thor, itself becoming a popular baby name (who would have thought?). So why not Thursday?

Lúthien Tinúviel is an elf princess in J. R. R. Tolkien’s legendarium, who falls in love with a mortal human, Beren, and chooses to become mortal herself rather than to live without him. Tinúviel is a Sindarin name given to her by Beren, meaning "daughter of twilight" and therefore "nightingale".

Part-April, part-Felicity, but with the wonderfully whimsical feel of Serendipity. Apricity debuted in the US charts for the first time in 2022.

Junius is one of those names that's growing on us, along with many of its Roman countrymen such as Julius and Atticus. We once thought it was a combination of the least attractive elements of Junior and Julius but now we think...well, we think it's okay. Not great, but okay.

Most things Jul-related – from the month of July to popular modern names Julia and Julian – originate with Roman emperor Julius Caesar, and the month name July is no exception. Fifteen girls and seven boys were named July in 2013, putting this month name into the class of gender neutral names.

Friday became famous as a name via the sidekick character in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, morphing into a generic term for an all-around professional assistant, as in "girl Friday." As a word for the day of the week, Friday is associated with the old English goddess Frigg and the Roman goddess Venus, though the character makes Friday more of a male name.

Nicole Richie and Joel Madden added this rocking name to the lexicon of day names, which have their roots in the African tradition of naming a child after the day of the week, time of day, or season in which he or she was born. But they wisely used it as a middle name.

Commonly heard in Hispanic cultures, a rhythmic possibility here.

The Akan people of Ghana and the Ivory Coast frequently name their children after the day of the week they were born and the order in which they were born. Most Ghanaians have a name using this system (think Kofi Annan, whose name means born on a Friday).

November is one of a growing list of month names that can work for a baby boy, and is also one of the ideal names for November babies.

One of the rarer names to come from the Bible, Cherith has a fresh and modern sound despite its ancient roots. Cherith was the name of the stream that kept Elijah alive during the three years' drought which he announced to King Ahab. In English, Cherith pleasingly reminds one of the word cherish which is another plus to this underused girls' name.

Thanks to two cultural influences, January has joined March, April, June and August as a plausible month name.

A name better left where it is, embroidered on a fifties poodle skirt.

Pascoe was popular in medieval times and is definitely deserving of revival, especially for a child born in the Easter season. Other spellings are Pasco and Pascow.

This Danielle/Monique hybrid offers a new twist on an old favorite.

Saturday derives from Saturn, so with day names and mythological names both gaining wider acceptance, we may see some babies named for this relaxing day of the week.

This name has two origins: the English word Dusk, meaning evening twilight and the Czech name for girls Duška meaning "soul or spirit". Either way, this is an interesting name with some potential.

Strongly associated with the city of Tel Aviv. For girls, may be lengthened to Aviva; for boys, might be better abbreviated to Avi.

Diminutive for all the Slavic names that start with Jar-. If for family or cultural reasons you're seeking such a name, then this is a reasonable short form.

A generic possibility if you don't want to specify Spring or Summer.