180+ Southern Names for Girls and Boys

  1. Sister
    • Origin:

      English, "a female who has one or both parents in common with another"
    • Meaning:

      "a female who has one or both parents in common with another"
    • Description:

      Sister is an old-timey nickname-name for girls, ranking in the Top 1000 as a proper name for girls until the beginning of the 20th century. But more often, Sister was used as a nickname in the truest sense of the word, not a short form ala Kathy but a nickname in the way that Chip and Bud are. Or maybe Junior is a more appropriate name analogy: Sister was sometimes the nickname given to the only girl in a family of boys, so literally a descriptive word name like Junior.
  2. Weldon
    • Bayard
      • Origin:

        English
      • Meaning:

        "russet-haired"
      • Description:

        An old English redhead name -- one of the few that doesn't begin with the letter r -- with references both to a famous French knight and a magical horse.
    • Jessup
      • Maribelle
        • Origin:

          English, combination of Mary and Belle
        • Meaning:

          "drop of the sea, bitter, or beloved + beautiful"
        • Description:

          Variant of Maribel
      • Atlanta
        • Origin:

          Place name
        • Meaning:

          "Atlantic Ocean"
        • Description:

          The capital of Georgia is far from the ocean, but got its name from the Western and Atlantic Railroad which ran through the city. Best known as a hub of industry and transport, and for its roles in the Civil War and Civil Rights Movement, it has never been popular as a baby name despite sounding like one. Its peak popularity was in 1995, the year before Atlanta hosted the Olympic Games.

      • Dacey
        • Origin:

          Irish
        • Meaning:

          "from the south"
        • Description:

          Dacey is a delicate and lacy Irish name with real possibilities.
      • Bourbon
        • Origin:

          Word name
        • Description:

          Not even for Brandy's twin brother.
      • Temple
        • Origin:

          English
        • Meaning:

          "dweller near the temple"
        • Description:

          Rather formal word name that has been used occasionally over the years, most notably for the autism activist and animal expert Temple Grandin.
      • Beauchamp
        • Origin:

          French
        • Meaning:

          "the beautiful field"
        • Description:

          Pronounced Beecham, but still too fancy and fey. Likewise Beaufort (beautiful fort), Beaufoy (beautiful beech tree), and Beaumont (beautiful mountain).
      • Fleming
        • Origin:

          English
        • Meaning:

          "man from Flanders"
        • Description:

          If it's not too phlegmatic for you, this surname and name of a Scottish clan could honor a number of people, especially Alexander Fleming, the father of antibiotics, and Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond.
      • Darl
        • Origin:

          Literary name
        • Description:

          This name of a character in Faulkner's As I Lay Dying is short, sweet and Southern-sounding.
      • Texas
        • Origin:

          Place-name
        • Description:

          After Dallas, Austin, and Houston, the new cowboy on the block. Old-school Western nickname: Tex.
      • Temani
        • Origin:

          Hebrew
        • Meaning:

          "from the south"
        • Description:

          This biblical name is also a Hebrew term for someone from Yemen, since that country is south of Israel.
      • Ellie-mae
        • Bayou
          • Origin:

            Nature name
          • Description:

            A slow and sultry southern choice that's definitely cool for babies of either gender.
        • Louvinia
          • Clytie
            • Origin:

              Greek mythology name
            • Meaning:

              "glorious or renowned"
            • Description:

              Clytie was a sea nymph who loved the sun god Helios, who spurned her. She turned into the heliotrope flower.
          • Williston
            • Willamae
              • Origin:

                Compound name, blending Willa and Mae
              • Meaning:

                "resolute protection + beloved, pearl, may"
              • Description:

                A smoosh name with plenty of both vintage and Southern charm. It combines the familiar Mae with up and coming Willa, and might remind people of jazz dancer Willa Mae Ricker.