Miss Randriana's Random Name Mix

The multicultural Yara is also the name of a beautiful green-skinned Brazilian goddess and might make a more unusual spin on Mara or Sara.

Possibly a variation of the Sanskrit Yoddha or the Hebrew Yodea, it is most likely that this Star Wars characters' name is purely fictional.

An appealing Japanese name with a nickname feel.

When aspiring British writer Sadie Smith decided to change her name to the more distinctive and zippy Zadie at the age of fourteen, this attention-magnet name was born. But though it might sound like a modern initial-switch, Zadie was actually Number 539 in 1881, remaining in the Top 1000 for almost thirty years.

Simple but sultry.

This is an African name that would fit into any culture.

Zinnia is an unusual floral choice with a bit more edge and energy than most and beginning to find its way onto namers' wish lists of botanical possibilities. Named after an eighteenth German botanist called Johann Gottfried Zinn, it appears in Roald Dahl's Matilda as the young protagonist's mother.

No, this name is not an homage to Grease! Zuko is a Xhosa (Zulu) boys' name meaning glory. In a world of Zekes, Zaks and Zanes, Zuko could make a refreshing choice for parents looking for something short and snappy.