Goldfish Names

Colorful, yes, but also probably among the hippiest of hippie names. Holly Madison recently chose it for her little girl.

Too tightly tied to the acronym for the activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Sunshine was seen as a quintessential hippie name of the 70s, reaching as high as Number 536 in 1975. Now such names are making a bit of a retro comeback, seen, for example, as a character on Glee.

One of the new color names that is catching on, invoking a calm, blue-green-sea feeling.

This Roman mythology (and planet) name would be very hard to handle. It derives from a root meaning cloud.

Gilda, although related to the words gold and gilded, has definitely tarnished. It once shimmered with the seductive image of Rita Hayworth in the film Gilda, then was associated with the beloved early Saturday Night Live star Gilda Radner. In opera, Gilda lives on as the name of the daughter of Rigoletto.

Unusual alternative to Fisher with a brisker surname appeal.

A name with an obvious meaning, for a long time associated with Golda Meir, the fourth Prime Minister of Israel. Nickname Goldie seems to be catching on in the celebrity community.

Spelt Xanthos in Greek, this alternate name for Apollo has a noble sound (pronounced ZHAN-thus) and can always be shortened to Xan.

Just like Flora is for botanicals, Jewel is the generic gemstone name, not used much since the early twentieth century, when it was seen as a symbol of how precious a daughter could be. The French version, Bijou, feels more modern, as do Pearl and Ruby.

Laguna Beach is a famous California spot -- though there's "goonie" teasing potential.

In the US, the multicultural surname Roe is primarily associated with the landmark Supreme Court case Roe vs. Wade, which granted the federal right to abortion, though elsewhere it might be associated with fish eggs or a small breed of reddish deer.

We've had Apples, Plums, Peaches, Cherries, and Berries added to the fruit basket: you could be the first to pick a Tangerine.

A bird name from the same Latin root as Aurelia, Oriole is extremely rare as a name: No babies were given the name in the US in 2022. But most people are aware of the Oriole bird, which makes this name uncommon yet possible.

A Dorothy nickname name with a measure of nostalgic charm. Kids will associate it with the funny fish character voiced by Ellen DeGeneres in the Pixar animated instant classic Finding Nemo.

This adorable fish name debuted on the baby name charts in 2020, inspired by a young girl character in the Netflix movie Love and Monsters. Minnow resembles well-established girl names Minnie, Willow, and Marlowe.

The more dignified and attractive Hebrew equivalent of Golda or Goldie.

Mango might be cute as a short form of a related name like Manuel, or for a pet name. But we're not feeling it as a full baby name for a child of any gender.