Celestian Names

Though it's French, most Americans would pronounce it as the stone.

Aida is a melodic name largely associated with the title character of the 1871 Verdi opera, an enslaved Ethiopian princess who dies to save her people. In the past, her name was rarely heard outside the Latino community, but in the current time of love for all A-starting girls' names, this could very well change.

Aiko is a very common Japanese name with a lovely meaning that is rarely heard outside the Asian community.

A pretty Kazakh name derived from Turkish ayla, meaning "moonlight". The Hawaiian name 'Ailana (with the 'okina mark) means "loving".

While Irish Gaelic spellings add intrigue to a name, they'll prove endlessly confusing. Ailbhe is pronounced like the less intriguing but infinitely simpler Alva.

This attractive and unique Scottish form of Alice can also be found in the spelling Aileas. Like Alice, it ultimately derives from the Germanic name Adalheidis. Spelt with the fada, Ailís, it's Irish and pronounced with a longer final vowel: AY-leesh.

This nature name hasn't escaped the hippie dippy air of others like River or Sky.

Old Irish name that's taken off in its Anglicized forms, mainly Ashlyn or Ashlynn. Nonetheless, this more traditional version debuted in the US Top 1000 in 2015.

The meaning of intelligent elevates this A-starting name for girls above other similar possibilities.

Akira is a popular Japanese name for both sexes that's migrated to the West because of its appearance in manga and video games. Akiro is a related name popular for boys.

A popular Japanese name for both sexes that's migrated to the West because of its appearance in manga and video games.

Ala is the Igbo earth goddess whose symbol is the crescent moon. In a very different vein, Ala can be a diminutive for Alicja or Alexandra or really any other name with an A at both ends and an L in the middle. Ala is also an Arabic name meaning "excellence, supremacy"; could be confused as a homonym for Allah, or as part of a phrase like a la mode.

Alaia, a fast riser in the US, sounds just like several other popular stylish names, many of them with different origins and meanings. There's Arabic Aaliyah, like the late singer, and the Hebrew Aliya and the Sanskrit Alaya. Azzedine Alaia is a high-fashion Parisian designer of Tunisian origin.

Alair is a lighter, more unusual form of Hilary.

In its three most popular spellings -- Alan along with Allen and Allan -- this midcentury favorite has tended to skew older. It was a Top 100 name from 1938 to 1971, peaking at Number 40 in 1951. Alan has had leading roles on recent TV, in shows like Two and a Half Men, 24 and Boston Legal.

One of those names you may not even be aware of if you haven't been paying attention to recent naming trends, Alani was given to more than 700 baby girls in the US in one recent year, to be the second most popular feminization of Alan after Alana. It's certainly the most modern-sounding female version of Alan.

The name of a beautiful water fairy in Turkish mythology, who has the power to grant wishes and mend broken hearts. Alara is also a popular name in Armenia.