160+ Bird Names for Babies

Iolana is a hip-swaying, melodic, and unusual choice. Similar Hawaiian bird-themed choice: Iolani.

One of the bird names that's more appropriate for a boy, though it works for a girl too.

Professional surfer Craig Elmer Chapman went by the avian nickname Owl. We could see it working as a given name, a la Hawk and Dove.

More common as a surname, Galvin is a possible alternative to Gavin and Calvin.

Meadowlark Lemon, known as the "Clown Prince" of the Harlem Globetrotters, played professional basketball for an astonishing 40 years. Lemon's original name was Meadow, as was his father's and his grandfather's, but he legally changed it to Meadowlark.

Solemn but soaring name with patriotic symbolism.

A genus of birds in the flycatcher family, Elaenia is one of the many unique baby names in the Elena family. But that spelling is sure to trip up some people.

That double a invests the old Arthur nickname with fresh life.

An eider is a sea duck whose feathers make ultra-soft eiderdown.

Columba is an early saint's name that rhumbas to a modern beat. While the original St. Columba is male, the name sounds more appropriate for a girl in the modern world. Leave variations Colm and Callum for the boys.

A striking Nordic name with ancient roots, Svala (and its less common variant form Svale) derive from the Old Norse name for the swallow. This could be a great choice for nature lovers and fans of Edith Piaf (piaf being a term for a swallow).

Feminine spin on Arnold that received a brief flurry of use in the early 1990s.

The name of the teenaged son on the dear departed television show "Huff."

Ptarmigan is the common English name for the genus Lagopus, in the grouse family of birds. The name is derived from the Scottish word for the bird, tàrmachan (meaning unknown), with the initial P- added by erroneous association with the Greek pteron ("wing").

In Greek mythology, Coronis is the name of several minor characters. The name is off-limits for the foreseeable future, due to its similarity to "corona."

Kew is an offbeat name of a saint from Cornwall with boyish appeal.

A quetzal is a beautiful, brightly-colored bird found in Mexico and Central America. It is the national bird of Guatemala, as well as the name of their currency.

Cherokee name that honors the eagle, a sacred symbol in Native American culture.

We once dismissed Bird as "too flighty", but with the rise of avian names from Lark to Robin to, well, Birdie, we don't see why Bird can't be a fine choice, especially as a middle name.

In Norway, Svale is also used as a short form of the rare name Svalaug/Svanlaug, meaning "swan oath". Svale is also a more modern form of Svali, meaning "cool, fresh".