Uncommon Welsh Names

Bowen is a Celtic surname representing two separate Celtic strains, one Welsh and one Irish, and entered the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2011.

Unusual floral name which would be perfect for a spring baby girl, if you can pronounce the Welsh double L correctly. It's a tricky sound for non-native Welsh speakers, kind of halfway between an H and an L.

This Welsh nature name that can be pronounced exactly like the male Ira. Or, to avoid confusion, you could just name her Snow.

An unusual Gwyn name with a lovely meaning, this compound name pairs Gwyn with the name Eira, meaning "snow". A relatively modern creation, it remains very rare.

Now that Tristan has been rediscovered, maybe it's time for his fabled lover in the Arthurian romances and Wagnerian opera, a beautiful Irish princess, to be brought back into the light as well.

Also spelled Macsen, this ancient name manages to sound modern and cool. An heroic namesake was Maxen Wledig, a fourth century Spanish-born general who led the Roman army out of Britain, and as Emperor was the most powerful occupant of the throne of the Caesars who had ever ruled Europe from the City of the Seven Hills.

Meredith is a soft, gentle-sounding name with subtle Welsh roots. Although originally a boys’ name , Meredith is used mainly for girls now.

Owain is much more unusual than its brother name Owen, and feels a little more rugged, a little more adventurous and ancient.

Penrose – an ancient place-name and surname derived from several villages in Cornwall, Wales, and the Welsh border country of England – would make for an even more unexpected alternative to quirky nature name Primrose. Intuitive nicknames Penny or Rosie make it feel more wearable.

Welsh form of Richard.

The delicate and haunting Welsh Rhonwen is still a rarity in the U.S., where her English version Rowena is better known, but would be a lovely choice for any parent in search of a name that was both unusual and traditional, classically feminine yet strong.

A fabled storybook name via the heroine of Sir Walter Scott's novel Ivanhoe (1819), which featured a heroine called Rowena of Hargottstanstede, and also a Harry Potter name, as Rowena Ravenclaw, founder of one of the Hogwarts houses..

Seren is a top girls' name in Wales – and a lovely choice almost unknown elsewhere. Seren, in the Sirona form, was an ancient goddess of the hot springs.

Said to be the name of the most learned man in ancient Wales, in this country it would be open to mispronunciation, making it rhyme with Julien.

Country singer Travis Tritt is partial to the letter T for his children's names: he has a Tyler, a Tristan, and a son named Tarian. Tarian is a unisex Welsh name which, though used more for girls in Wales, would be perfectly acceptable here for a boy.