Unique Girl Names: Uncommon, Unusual, Cool

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

Gemstone names have a long history of use, from Ruby to Pearl. Emeraude is the French word for emerald. If the Spanish Esmeralda is stylish, why not Emeraude?

Politics aside, the Cuban capital is one of the most rhythmic of place-names. The question is: can politics be put aside?

Baylor is a possible occupational alternative to the tired Taylor, especially for a horse lover.

More colorful than Blanche, but blanker than Bianca.

A rare and refined Irish place name (Cinn Mhara) turned baby name, belonging to a picturesque harbor town. As a given name, it has received occasional use especially amongst the upper classes in Britain. Lady Kinvara Balfour is an English playwright and novelist.

Relic of a past period of French favorites, out to pasture with Claudette and Paulette.

Unfamiliar Asian choice that can work for a parent in search of something really different.

Cyrilla is an obscure feminization of Cyril that's a bit buttoned-up but also intriguingly unique, with an authentic pedigree. Spelling Cirilla is more visible thanks to The Witcher series, in which its the name of the heroine Princess Cirilla, nicknamed Ciri. 40 baby girls were named Cirilla in the US in 2021, vs. only 10 called Cyrilla.

This French word for star sounds like even more of a celebrity-worthy choice than Star or Esther or Estella or Stella. But count on English speakers who never took high school French to stumble over the pronunciation.

An inspirational and aspirational word name that evokes ideas of loyalty, faith, honesty, and accuracy, True is a unisex name, which is just slightly more popular for boys. Like an updated form of Trudy and Prue and with the virtuous feel of Grace, Faith, and Hope, True was given to around 200 girls in 2023.

Halia is one of Hawaii's top baby names, in the Top 50 for girls in 2021. But it's rare outside its native Hawaii, given to only 57 baby girls in the US last year.

Rayen is well-known in Chile, and sometimes seen in the Netherlands, as a Mapuche girls name meaning flower. This name could be an alternative to people who like Ryan but want to keep it as a boys name or as a spunkier alternative to other names that mean flower, such as Fleur and Flora.

Dynamic and creative; common in Africa, challenging here. Pronunciation isn't as difficult as you'd guess, but everyone will have to ask. Many favor n-GO-zee, but a native speaker tells us that it is closer to n-GAW-zee, and we've found at least one n-GAH-zee, too.

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

Most names that start with Cam- are on the upswing, so why not this obscure term for Wales as well as for a prehistoric time period.

Earthier version of the name of England's first female professional writer, Aphra Behn.

Jessamy and big sister Jessamine are all but unknown in the U.S., but make distinctive alternatives to overexposed Jessica, Jessie, and Jasmine.

Putting the emphasis on the "elle" softens a name that seems at once futuristic and medieval.

One of a number of single-syllable unisex B-names, Brett was first spotted as a female name in Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, via the dashing and seductive Lady Brett Ashley, who was a captivating enough character to offer naming inspiration. It combines a pleasingly brisk, executive air with a measure of femininity.