Awesome Slavic Names

No longer tied to the hapless Ace Ventura, this jaunty, high-flying nickname name is starting to take flight among celebrity and other parents, with its countless positive references to doing well in tests and poker games, on the tennis court and golf course, and in the air.

A historical name with pagan roots that belonged to Aldona, a 14th-century Queen consort of Poland and princess of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Aleksandra is the preferred spelling in many Eastern European languages and cultures, but for English-speakers it's ironically more confusing if also perfectly phonetically clear.

Alena is a modern variant of Helen. Alena might also be a spelling twist on the Slavic Alina or a long form of Lena.

Nickname for Alena, a Helen variation that can be heard in Eastern Europe.

About 60 girls were named Alise in the US last year, making it an uncommon but not truly rare name. While it's pretty and intriguing as a spin on the very popular Alice, it's pronounced more like Elise or -- in Latvian -- Elisa, and so may prove more confusing than it's worth. If you want to name your daughter Alice, name her Alice, and if you want to name her Elise, name her Elise. Choosing Alise in many ways gives you the worst of all worlds.

Alma is a somewhat solemn, soulful name that had a burst of popularity a century ago, then faded into the flowered wallpaper, and is now finding its footing once more.

Confident and compact, Ana is a widely used variation of the Biblical Hannah. Favored in Spain, Slovenia, Bosnia, Portugal, and Croatia, this shorter spelling has the same substance and versatility of its longer counterparts.

The Slovene feminine form of Andrew.

As a boys' name, Angel has two distinct name personalities. One is as a perennial favorite Hispanic boys’ name, popular in the US along with Spain, Mexico, and South America.

Angela was a Top 10 name from 1965 to 1979, the fifth most popular name for three years, and staying in the double digits until the turn of the 21st century. Today, though, Angelina or Angelica would be more fashionable options.

Diminutive form of Anna, pronounced "ah-nee-tsa" in Slovene, Croatian and Serbian and like Annika in Romanian.

Anja is one of the most international of several versions of Ann/Anna now being imported, also including Anya and Annika.

Slavic diminutive of Anna

Cultured and cultivated in an old-style, Old World way, Anton is popular across Europe. It may be associated with the classic Russian playwright Anton Chekhov and also with ballroom dancer Anton Du Beke.