Epic, idyllic, melodious girls names.

  1. Goldie
    • Origin:

      Anglicized form of Yiddish Golde or Golda
    • Description:

      More Sadie than Sadie, this old canasta player--somewhat modernized and energized by Goldie Hawn--looks like it could be making a comeback. It was recently chosen for her daughter by Ione Skye and Ben Lee, as well as by shoemeister Steve Madden.
  2. Guinevere
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "white shadow, white wave"
    • Description:

      Guinevere was the name of the beautiful but ill-fated queen of Camelot, for so many years eclipsed by its modern Cornish form Jennifer. Today, Guinevere could be a cool possibility for adventurous parents intrigued by this richly evocative and romantic choice.
  3. Gwendoline
    • Origin:

      Variation of Gwendolen, Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "white ring"
    • Description:

      The Gwendoline form may introduce pronunciation confusion -- does that last syllable rhyme with wine or win or when? We vote Gwendolen as not only the most proper but the clearest spelling, followed by Gwendolyn, with Gwendoline a distant third.
  4. Gwendolyn
    • Origin:

      Variation of Gwendolen, Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "white ring"
    • Description:

      One spelling variation that's more popular than the original, this somewhat old-fashioned name might be in honor of poet Gwendolyn Brooks, the first African-American to win a Pulitzer prize for poetry, or may be a way to get to the modern short form Gwen.
  5. Gwenddoleu
    • Gwendolina
      • Gwenllian
        • Gwenonwy
          • Harrietta
            • Henrietta
              • Origin:

                Feminine variation of Henry
              • Meaning:

                "estate ruler"
              • Description:

                Despite a return to such feminizations of male names as Josephine, Clementine, and Theodora, starchy Henrietta has not made it into that group. Still, if you look hard enough, you'll see that Henrietta has the same vintage charm.
            • Hermione
              • Origin:

                Greek, feminine version of Hermes, "messenger, earthly"
              • Meaning:

                "messenger, earthly"
              • Description:

                Hermione's costarring role in Harry Potter has made this previously ignored, once stodgy name suddenly viable. Hermione could really take off once today's children start having kids of their own.
            • Holiday
              • Origin:

                English word name
              • Meaning:

                "holy day"
              • Description:

                Free and fun name if you don't want to be pinned down to Noelle, Pasqua, or Valentine.
            • Halliday
              • Helianthe
                • Ianthe
                  • Origin:

                    Greek
                  • Meaning:

                    "purple flower"
                  • Description:

                    Like Violet, Lavender and Lilac, Ianthe is a purple flower name. Chosen by the poet Shelley for his daughter, Ianthe has a poetic, romantic, almost ethereal quality. In the ancient myth, she was the daughter of Oceanus, supreme ruler of the sea, and also a Cretan woman so beautiful that when she died the Gods made purple flowers grow around her grave.
                • Imogen
                  • Origin:

                    Celtic
                  • Meaning:

                    "maiden"
                  • Description:

                    Imogen has long been fashionable in England and is gaining favor in the US among stylish parents. Pronounced the British way — the initial i is short as in Kim, as is the final E as in Ken — Imogen is as pretty and classy as it is distinctive.
                • Imogene
                  • Io
                    • Origin:

                      Greek mythology name
                    • Description:

                      Io may be one of the slightest names in the book, but there aren't many two-letter names with as much substance as this Greek mythological example. Io, a name used for the largest moon of Jupiter, was in classic myth raped by Zeus and escaped from him by changing herself into a cow.
                  • Iolanthe
                    • Origin:

                      Greek
                    • Meaning:

                      "violet flower"
                    • Description:

                      Iolanthe is known primarily through the 1882 Gilbert & Sullivan operetta of that name, in which the title character is a fairy. Iolanthe is a softer version of Yolanda, and is the kind of multi-syllabic classical name once considered too weighty for a modern baby girl, but now within the realm of possibility--this one as a dramatic twist on Violet. The biggest drawback is its variety of legitimate pronunciations in English.
                  • Iona
                    • Origin:

                      Scottish place-name
                    • Description:

                      This name of a small island off the coast of Scotland is trending upwards along with other I names.