Names ending in a

Name your daughter Duana after a Duane relative if you like, but please pronounce it doo-ahn-a and not doo-wain-a.

In Roman mythology, Libera was the female equivalent of the god Liber. She would eventually become assimilated into the goddess Prosperina.

In Greek mythology, Nomia was a nymph and companion of Callisto.

Made famous by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, whose parents fashioned her name from a musical term meaning "with sweetness".

Amasa is a rare Biblical name borne by two figures. One is the son of Abigail and nephew of King David, who named him commander of the rebels. This Amasa met a tragic end when he was murdered by Joab. The other Biblical Amasa was one of the Children of Ephraim.

The Greek name for Easter, derived from the same root as Pesach, the Hebrew word for Passover.

A Hawaiian dad name, Keola ranked among the top names in Hawaii in the 1970s. Keola is derived from the Hawaiian ke, "the" and ola meaning "life" or "health".

The exact meaning of Castania is unknown, but it is likely related to the Italian word castana, meaning "brown". Some sources connect this name to the Spanish castaña, "chestnut", but there is no evidence behind that meaning.

Raja is a widely-used Arabic or Sanskrit name that works for girls as well as boys. Five baby girls were named Raja and seven given the Rajah spelling in the US last year, where for boys the popularity of the spellings was reversed: 18 Raja to ten Rajah.

Kosma sounds like a name from a 1950s science fiction movie. Better contemporary choice: Cosima.

With Bear and Fox becoming hot baby names, why not Panda? Why not indeed. Both the name and its animal namesake are adorable. And Pan is a nickname right in line with the mythological name trend. The word panda comes from the Nepali word ponya, meaning "bamboo eater" for the panda's favorite food.

This Spanish form of the yet-to-be-revived Ignatius was borne by an early and influential Philipina nun known as Mother Ignacia.

Eigra is a name with a great mythological and literary past - it is the Welsh version of Igraine/Ygraine, who was the mother of King Arthur.