My Favorite Guilty Pleasure Names

  1. Delta
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "letter or island"
    • Description:

      Delta is an unusual vintage option with a lazy-day-down-by-the-river feel. Delta is the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet and also the geographical name given to an island formed at the mouth of a river.
  2. Denali
    • Origin:

      Place-name and Native American
    • Meaning:

      "the great one"
    • Description:

      Alaska's Denali National Park is the home of the highest mountain in the US, officially renamed Denali in 2014, endowing the name with a lofty feel. Twice as many girls as boys were given the name in 2021, but the gender gap is closing.
  3. Echo
    • Origin:

      Greek mythology name
    • Meaning:

      "echo or sound"
    • Description:

      Echo, the pretty, resonant name of a legendary nymph, was the heroine of Joss Whedon's sci-fi series Dollhouse. Nick Hexum, of the band 311, named his daughter Echo Love.
  4. Edelweiss
    • Origin:

      Flower name, from German
    • Meaning:

      "noble white"
    • Description:

      Edelweiss, made famous by the Rogers and Hammerstein song in "The Sound of Music", is a rare female name.
  5. Ellington
    • Origin:

      English place-name and surname
    • Meaning:

      "Ellis' town"
    • Description:

      Ellington's popularity may be inspired by jazz great Duke, but the name is used slightly more often for girls today, perhaps because of its trendy El- beginning. Like a host of other El- names, from the familiar Ella to Eleanor to the more niche Elodie and Elula, Ellington carries the popular Ellie nickname.
  6. Emmalia
    • Forever
      • Origin:

        Word name
      • Description:

        Eternal--or eternally pretentious?
    • Gracious
      • Origin:

        English word name
      • Meaning:

        "marked by kindness and courtesy"
      • Description:

        A warm and positive English word name, used by the Puritans for both sexes but now given to only around a dozen baby girls each year.
    • Haven
      • Origin:

        Word name, English
      • Meaning:

        "a place of safety"
      • Description:

        Haven is a recently invented safe-harbor name that appeals to an increasing number of parents who don't want to voyage quite as far as Heaven.
    • Hollis
      • Origin:

        English
      • Meaning:

        "dweller at the holly trees"
      • Description:

        Hollis is a surname-name used quietly for both genders. At last count, it was given to over 200 baby boys and 160 baby girls in the US. Now a Top 1000 name for boys, it could well break into the charts for girls too in the coming years.
    • Honest
      • Origin:

        English virtue name
      • Description:

        Honor-related names are climbing in popularity, such as Honesty, Honor, and now Honest.
    • Illumination
      • Origin:

        Word name
      • Description:

        Illumination is a many-syllabled entrant in the new-fashioned virtue name group, but doesn't stand much chance of rivaling shorter choices like Hope and Faith.
    • Indigo
      • Origin:

        Greek
      • Meaning:

        "Indian dye"
      • Description:

        Indigo is one of the most appealing and evocative of the new generation of color names. Color names have joined flower and jewel names -- in a big way -- and Indigo, a deep blue-purple dye from plants native to India, is particularly striking for both girls and boys. Indigo is the name of a character in the Ntozake Shange novel Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo, and was used for his daughter by Lou Diamond Phillips.
    • Ireland
      • Origin:

        Place name
      • Description:

        Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin put Ireland on the map when they chose it as a first for their daughter, saying that geographic names were a family tradition. And it seems they were a bit ahead of the curve (or trendsetting)—Ireland has been among the fastest-rising names of recent years. Other Irish place names include Shannon, Kerry, Galway, and Dublin.
    • Isis
      • Origin:

        Egyptian
      • Meaning:

        "throne"
      • Description:

        Isis has gone from magical, feminist name on the rise to the forbidden list because of the extremist terror group called ISIS, an acronym for Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Unsurprisingly, Isis was one of the fastest-falling names in 2014, dropping 130 ranks to reach #706. Interestingly, however, since 2020, it has begun to see increased use again, and 2023 saw it given to 151 girls.
    • Jemima
      • Origin:

        Hebrew
      • Meaning:

        "dove"
      • Description:

        Jemima, the name of a strong and beautiful Biblical daughter of Job, has long been among the chicest choices of aristocratic Brits, most recently ranking at #231 there in 2017. But despite its lovely sound and peaceful meaning, this attractive name hasn't ranked in the US Top 1000 since 1893, no doubt due to the problematic association with racial stereotyping, exemplified by the Aunt Jemima brand of pancakes.
    • Journey
      • Origin:

        English word name
      • Meaning:

        "passage from one place to another"
      • Description:

        One of the new word names, appealing to parents attracted to the idea of a spiritual -- or even an actual -- voyage. The Journee spelling is also being used. Unisex alert: Jenna Jameson used Journey for one of her twin boys, as did the Black Eyed Peas rock musician known as Taboo.
    • Jubilee
      • Origin:

        Hebrew
      • Meaning:

        "ram's horn"
      • Description:

        Jubilee has a joyous and jubilant aura, but it wouldn't be an easy name to carry, what with all that pressure to be a living, breathing, 24-7 party. Jubilee was the name selected by television's Duggars for their miscarried child.
    • Juniper
      • Origin:

        Latin tree name
      • Meaning:

        "young"
      • Description:

        Juniper is a fresh-feeling nature name -- it's a small evergreen shrub -- with lots of energy. A new favorite of fashionable parents, Juniper joins such other tree and shrub names as Hazel, Acacia, and Willow.
    • Liberty
      • Origin:

        Word name
      • Description:

        Less common than other virtue names, Liberty is nonetheless a name with a long American heritage.