Names I'm Considering for an OC I Made for One of My Favorite Anime

Pretty and unusual.

Appealing crosscultural choice.

An Arabic name with a powerful and alluring meaning, in Islamic tradition, Isra refers to one part of the Night Journey that the Prophet Muhammad, in which he led other prophets such as Ibrahim, Isa, and Musa in prayer. Popular in Belgium, the UK, and the Netherlands, it is climbing the US charts.

This lively Old Testament nature name (belonging to one of the three beautiful daughters of Job) may be missing from the current US Top 1000 list, but it ranks highly here on Nameberry — making it one to watch!

The Prophet Muhammad's first wife and the first convert to Islam, and a very popular name in the Muslim community. It ranks in the Top 200 girls' names in France, Italy and England & Wales (alongside variant Khadijah just below the Top 200).

Khione was the name of several minor figures in Greek mythology, of which the most notable is the nymph who Hermes turned into a snow cloud. Khione works as both a high-brow mythological name and a Kardashian-trendy K name.

The name Kiri was made famous by New Zealand soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, whose original name was Claire. Cute but slight, Kiri is close to several other names from Kiriah to Keira to Kyra and its diminutive Kyrie.

Kyrie elieson is one of the oldest religious refrains, meaning Lord, have mercy. As a first name, though, Kyrie is less a name of God and more a nickname-name that might be short for Kyra or a diminutive that stands on its own, a la Kylie. The best-known Kyrie is the male basketball player Kyrie Irving, who pronounces the first syllable to rhyme with my rather than fear. He has inspired more than 1000 baby boys to be given this name one recent year in the US, while it was given to 178 baby girls. Impressive numbers.

Saint Eulalia was born in Spain and is the patron saint of Barcelona, so her name and its derivatives are popular throughout the land — especially in her native Catalonia.

Another feminine form of the old saint's name Mael. Spelled Maëlys, it is a very popular name in France today.

Mara is the evocative ancient root of Mary, appearing in the Book of Ruth, in which Naomi, devastated after the death of her two sons, says "Call me not Naomi, call me Mara." It's one of the girl names starting with M that both fits in and stands out.

English speakers might want to pronounce this lovely name like the familiar Mary or Merry, but the correct Persian pronunciation includes the h -- meh-ree.

Star in Orion that might make a fine name, except people will always assume it's Melissa, with a typo.

This cute as a button name stems from the Goonayandi word for the sun and can be used as a unisex name.

Nashira is one of those obscure space names that might rise along with such heavenly choices as Orion, Luna, and even Nevaeh. A giant star in Capricorn, Nashira is an unusual and attractive name with several positive associations.

This is a lovely Persian name for a rare, special girl.

A simple but unusual name with roots in disparate cultures, Neri appears in the Bible as a male name and is still sometimes used for boys as well as girls. The appeal of Neri are its deep roots combined with its simple, upbeat, modern feel, ala Peri and Rory.