European Girl Names

Fien is a popular enough girls' name to make the Top 100 in The Netherlands. Dutch parents love nickname-names taken from the last vs. the first syllable of a name, like Sanne for Susanne or Lotte for Charlotte.

Iria is a diminutive version of Eirene / Irene and is therefore associated with the Greek goddess of peace.

Manuela is one feminine form that's more energetic than the male original, and is worth considering if you're seeking an easily assimilated Spanish name.

The saintly Italian form of the saintly Latin Benedicta.

Benthe is a popular Dutch abbreviation of the feminine for Benedict.

The popular Dutch name Lieke is one of those diminutives, like Lena, that can be short for a range of names ending in its sound -- which, by the way, is the two-syllable LEE-ka. Despite its versatility, we don't see Lieke's popularity translating to English-speaking cultures.

Finja Is a Josephine nickname that ranks among the Top 100 girl names in Germany.

Majken, which is related to Maiken and Maike, is a popular name in Sweden whose variations are used throughout Scandinavia as cooler forms of Mary. Majken is virtually unknown in the U.S. and probably not bound for emigration.

The exact origins of Tiril remain a mystery, but it is generally considered to be a name from Norwegian poetry. The heroine of Johan Sebastian Cammermeyer’s fantastical poem "Lokkende Toner" is Tirilil Tove.

Frostine, best known in the U.S. as the name of the Candyland queen, is newly fashionable in France and is certainly a choice that any little girl the world over would love. Fanciful, if over-the-top, but a perfect name for a winter baby girl.

This Dutch name derives from the old Germanic name, Farahild. It is quite common in the Netherlands.

Leyre is an important name in Navarre, Spain, as it is both the name of a mountain and an ancient monastery. It is derived from the Basque Leire, of uncertain origins. Both spellings currently rank among the Top 100 baby names in Spain.

Hilma is heard in Germany and the Scandinavian countries, and sometimes used as a shortening of Wilhelmina--though there are more appealing German names for girls. to be found. Hilma Wolitzer is an American novelist and the mother of author Meg Wolitzer.

This unisex name ranks among the most popular girl names in Norway, though it has a number of different roots.

Siv, or sometimes Sif, was the name of Thor's wife and is popular in modern Scandinavia. In Norse mythology, Siv was the goddess of fertility and agriculture.

Oline is an old school feminization of the classic Scandinavian Ole or Olaf that is still popular enough to rank among the Top 100 girl names in Norway.

Xanthipe, also spelled Xanthippe, is the name of the wife of Socrates. Challenging for English speakers, it's also dramatic and alluring.

Not-so-attractive short form of a lovely name.

Russian form of Stephanie livens up that flagging classic.