The Hoarder's List of Names

Like its cousin Tessa, Nessa -- a shortening of Vanessa or Agnes or Anastasia among other possibilities -- is an attractive nickname that can stand on its own.

You may never have known a Nettie personally, but there well might be one hidden in your family history, considering that she was a Top 100 name until 1901 and stayed on the Social Security list until 1962.

Short but energetic and substantial, Nia has special meaning for African-American parents, as it's one of the days of Kwanza. Nia also benefits by its similarity to (yet differentness from) the megapopular Mia.

While Niall -- pronounced as Neil or like the river Nile -- is conventionally a boys' name, it might theoretically work for girls.

Nicandro might be of interest as a blend of two Anglo favorites -- Nicholas and Andrew.

An interesting and unusual member of the "Nic" family--far more distinctive than NICOLE or NICOLA.

Closer to Nike than to Nicholas, this is an attractive, viable import. It's also one of several Italian and Spanish baby names that get you to the stylish and attractive nickname Nico.

Russian names, like Russian supermodels, are hot these days, at least they are when politics alow it. This is a strong way to make Nicholas new. More authentically spelled Nikolai.

A much more dynamic nickname than Nicky for any of the Nic-names. Nico was chosen by Thandiwe Newton for her daughter.

This rarely used New Testament name could make an unusual route to the cool nickname Nico. Nicodemus (Noddy) Boffin is a character in the Dickens novel Our Mutual Friend.

Nicolette is the ultra-feminine name of an enchanting princess in the medieval French romance, Aucassin et Nicolette, a name that got stacks of publicity in the heyday of Desperate Housewives and its star Nicolette Sheridan. It was also the name of Chloe Sevigny's character in Big Love.

A name bestowed in honor of the Virgin Mary, Nuestra Señora de la Nieves, referring to a miracle she performed with unmelted snow in the August heat of Rome.

Russian forms, like Russian supermodels, are hot these days. This is a strong, worldly way to make Nicholas new; it was chosen for his son by Barry Bonds, Jr. Nikolai also comes with several attractive nickname options, including approachable Nik, spunky Niko, or even hip Kai. A traditional nickname for Nikolai in Russia is Kolya.

Nikolas is a sleek and international spelling of this longtime favorite, chosen by parents who might like the Nik or Niko short form.

The mythological queen whose perpetual weeping for her slain children turned her into a stone has always cast a pall over this name. Still, when other names with less-than-savory associations -- Delilah, Ophelia, Persephone -- are becoming popular, parents might want to consider this one of the more unusual mythology names for girls.

Noah is nearly a patriarch of popular baby names at this point, going from Old Testament graybeard to Top 10 name in 2009, hitting Number 1 in 2013, and now settled into second place in the US for the past seven years.