Place Names for Babies

An undiscovered place-name with an appealing o-sound ending.

A new crop of gender-neutral English place names have suddenly become trendy — those ending in -ton. Multi-syllabic but not dramatic, these names are rising quickly for girls and boys. Think Charleston, Lexington, and Kensington. Livingston isn't as hot as some of the others, but its time will soon come. For a girl, Livingston boasts the nickname Liv.

A noveau place-name and surname combo.

Place-name that suggests the highest heights and carries a hippyish aura.

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.

Ephratah appears in the bible as both the name of a woman--she was the second wife of Caleb and grandmother of one of the spies sent by Moses to Canaan to gather information about the Promised Land--and as that of two places. Ephratah is where Rachel died while giving birth to Benjamin and is also the ancient name of Bethlehem, where Jesus Christ was born.

A phonetically attractive place-name that can be used for babies but rarely is.

Beautiful downtown Burbank -- about as glamorous a place-name as Akron...or Detroit.

Britain is an attractive place that is used nearly equally for boys and girls. But spelling it Britton makes it considerably more popular for both genders.

Asbury Park, a quirky town on the Jersey Shore, was named for Francis Asbury, the first American bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Springsteen fans will likely be among those most drawn to Asbury as a first name; the Boss's first album was called "Greetings from Asbury Park."

A rare geographical option which has never been given to more than 12 baby boys per year in the US, but is familiar to everyone. The actual meaning of the state's name, which comes from that of a local tribe, is unknown, but it has often been said to mean "people of the west wind".

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.

If you're tired of Olivia, you could be the first on your block to introduce this unique sound-related place-name with Latin flair.

A globetrotting placename — Diani Beach is a popular tourist destination on the Indian Ocean in Kenya. It's similar enough to Dion and Diana to feel namelike, although it is actually very rare in the US.

According to legend -- and, crucially, the Wonder Woman comics and movies -- Themyscira is the home of the Amazons, a mythical race of powerful female warriors. As depicted in the DC comics, Themyscira is a lush utopian island in the middle of a vast ocean. It was also the name of a real town in the Ancient Greek world, on the southern coast of the Black Sea in modern-day Turkey.

The Arabic word for Palestine made the US charts for the first time in 2021. It makes a unique first or middle name choice to honor Palestinian heritage.

Among the Top Ten Basque baby girls' names, this is actually the place name of an island and is related to other such names as Isla. An unusual O-ending girls' name.

With so many other places translating to first names, why not this major Japanese city -- especially if it holds some personal significance.

The Alhambra, which means "red city," is in Granada, Spain. British writer Ali Smith used it for a character in her novel The Accidental.