Queens of Old

With its relation to Mount Olympus, home of the Greek gods, and to the Olympic games, this name has an athletic, goddess-like aura, making it the perfect Olivia substitute.

Penelope is an unlikely 21st century baby name success story. Off the Top 1000 for 25 years, Penelope jumped back on in 2001 and has been heading uphill ever since, propelled by the trend for mythological names, Spanish actress Penelope Cruz, and some high-profile celebrity babies.

Petronilla is an ancient saint's name that relates to the Roman family name Petronius, thought to mean yokel, though some connect it with Petra or Peter, meaning stone. With the resurgence of so many ancient Roman names, the elaborate and pretty Petronilla or its French form Petronille seem more usable these days than they have in centuries.

In the Zulu and Xhosa languages of Southern Africa, Phila is a unisex name pronounced "PEE-la" and means "to live of life" It's also the feminine version of the ancient Greek name Philo, pronounced "FEE-la", meaning friend or lover and present in several contemporary names and words used throughout the Western World. The name Philip, for instance, means lover of horses, while the city name Philadelphia means "brotherly love" and philosophy means "love of wisdom".

A classic name with regal elegance--Queen Victoria, like other queens, had Regina appended to her name. She was a Top 100 name in the 1960s.

The name of the wife of Alexander the Great, more attractive than the better-known Roxanne. Roxana was first used in the English-speaking world in the 1600s and was popularized by Daniel Defoe's novel Roxana, published in 1724. An underused and attractive possibility and perfect if you're searching for names that mean new beginnings.

Rozala of Italy was an early queen of the Francs and a Countess of Flanders

A soft and interesting Hebrew name long popular in France, where it has ranked in the Top 400 since 1986 (as Salomé). Ex-ER star Alex Kingston named her daughter Salome Violetta.

Scheherazade -- or Sheherazade --is a legendary Persian queen immortalized as the narrator of all one thousand stories in the One Thousand and One Nights. Her story is even more remarkable than the tales she tells.

Semiramis/Semiramide was the most important Queen of Assyria, who conquered much of Asia. Semiramis restored ancient Babylon and protected it with a high brick wall that completely surrounded the city. Then she built several palaces in Persia, reigned much of Asia Minor effectively and conquered Libya and Ethiopia. The version Semiramide was used by Giacomo Rossini in his opera of the same name.

Semiramis was the most important Queen of Assyria, who conquered much of Asia. Semiramis restored ancient Babylon and protected it with a high brick wall that completely surrounded the city. Then she built several palaces in Persia, reigned much of Asia Minor effectively and conquered Libya and Ethiopia.

The tale-spinning heroine of The Thousand and One Nights, Sheherazade is an extravagantly elaborate name for a little girl. Too extravagantly elaborate? It's lovely and beguiling, and with the rise of such evocative monikers as Persephone and Ophelia, Sheherazade may have a chance in the modern baby name world. Another accepted spelling is Scheherazade. While the origin of this name is Persian, there are also modern Arabic forms of the name.

An attractive unisex choice heard in several countries, including Armenia. Can be pronounced sheer-IN or sheer-EEN.

Sigrid is a distinctly Scandinavian name that is starting to edge out into the wider world, a la cousin Ingrid. Unfortunately, short form Siri is now off the table, but Sigrid is still a possibility.

Sophia, which was the Number 1 girls' name in the US from 2011 to 2013, is among the top girl names in the Western World, with a sensuous sound and high-minded meaning. A real winner, Sophia reached the top of the charts without losing any—okay, much—of its sophisticated beauty.

Tamar is a rich, strong Old Testament name sometimes given to girls born on the holiday of Sukkoth, as palm branches were used to make the roof of the sukkah. In the Bible, there are several Tamars, including a daughter of King David and also Absalom's daughter, who is praised for her 'fair countenance'.

Theodora is one of the most revival-worthy of the charmingly old-fashioned Victorian valentine names, softly evocative but still substantial, as is the reversed-syllable Dorothea.

The name of an area in northern Greece, known in the era of Homer's Odyssey as Aeolia, Thessaly makes a spirited and pretty place name. Reminiscent of Tessa, Rosalie, and Thea, the name likely derives from that of an ancient tribe, though the exact meaning isn't known.