Cool Baby Names That Start With I

A simple name that's rising fast in the US, likely inspired by the popularity of Isla and Ayla. This streamlined form might appeal to those who like Ana, Ivy, and Ada, and it brings a multicultural element to the name.

Ing was a powerful Norse god whose name inspired several modern variations -- though Inga has become a caricatured Scandinavian choice.

Ilana is a name with seemingly endless variations, well used in Israel, sometimes chosen for little girls born on the holiday of TuB'Shevat, the New Year of the Trees.

Widely used in the Hispanic community, as is the shorter Isai. While the original Isaiah and cousin Isaac are much more popular, Isaias commanded attention as the name of a storm in the summer of 2020.

Multipurpose pet name serving Isidore, Isaac, Israel, and -- increasingly -- Isabel.

The rise of the the various Isabel names may give a boost to this variation, which has a sunny, springtime feel.

Iago, the villain of Shakespeare's Othello, was so treacherously evil that his name has hardly ever been heard offstage. Try the much-more-benign Inigo.

Three syllables in only four letters is quite a feat, but that's exactly what you get with Ilia, a versatile, unisex option with various origins. It could derive from the Greek Iliana, which could denote someone from Illium, or it could be a feminine form of Ilian, a form of Elijah. Alternatively, it is a Basque form of Julia, or a Bulgarian feminine form of Ilya, with again links back to Elijah. Currently a gender neutral option in the US, it may be exclusively masculine elsewhere.

Musical association with Igor Stravinsky, but also Dr. Frankenstein's right-hand man.

Idra is one of the less obvious botanical names. In ancient times, a fig tree was a symbol of learning, peace, and prosperity.

Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin put Ireland on the map when they chose it as a first for their daughter, saying that geographic names were a family tradition. And it seems they were a bit ahead of the curve (or trendsetting)—Ireland has been among the fastest-rising names of recent years. Other Irish place names include Shannon, Kerry, Galway, and Dublin.

Son of Irving.

Iara rhymes with Yara, an Arabic name of which it can be a variation. More commonly it's associated with Iara of Brazilian myth — a water nymph, sometimes mermaid, of Tupi and Guaraní legend. In the legends, Iara seduces men to the river to accompany her in her immortal life.

Ilsa is remembered as the radiant but tragic heroine of "Casablanca," and it's having something of a European resurgence.

The Indre is a river in France. Spelled Indra, it's the name of a powerful deity worshipped by Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains — roughly the South Asian equivalent of the Greek Zeus or Norse Odin. But either Indra or Indre might make a simple, captivating, attractive name for a modern little girl.

Commonly heard in its native country, and might get a boost here too, now that Alanis Morrissette has used it for her son Ever's middle name.

A surnamier take on Isla. Isley may be derived from the German occupational surname Eisele (of the same pronunciation), or be related to the Old English word hesli, meaning "hazel grove."

In Roman mythology, Iana was an epithet of Diana, goddess of the moon.

A unisex cultural crossover that has seen a little use from the 1990s onwards. In Japanese mythology, Inari is an androgynous deity associated with rice, tea and foxes. In Finland, it is the name of a region, lake and village which is a center of Sami culture.