Female Historic Names

Could cute nickname Gertie, remembered as cute five-year-old Drew Barrymore in E.T., revive the long shunned Gertrude?

The French variation of Giselle was made famous by the spectacular Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.

Hard as it might be to believe, Gladys was the Harper of 1900, emerging almost out of nowhere to take the naming world by storm. It became a favorite among parents — and writers of romantic Edwardian novels, seen as alluring and unusual. One impetus was the 1870 Ouida novel Puck, whose heroine was the idealized beauty, Gladys Gerant.

Whether you think of the chocolates or the naked long-haired lady on the horse, Godiva is a name with baggage no child should have to carry.

Although Gracia is the literal Spanish translation of Grace and is used as the Grace equivalent in Spanish-speaking countries, where it's pronounced grah-see-a, it's also a long-time if unusual Grace variation pronounced gray-sha. You might consider Gracia if Grace is getting too commonplace for you.