Animal Names for Girls

A pretty and delicate cousin of Anna is often heard in Scotland and is also currently popular in France. In the US it was brought to public attention by child actress Anissa Jones, who played Buffy on the popular TV show Family Affair, which debuted in 1966, bringing her name onto the charts the following year. Born Mary Anissa, her middle/stage name reflected her Lebanese heritage.

Very popular in Wales, this perfectly nice name's only problem is its similarity to the dated Beth Ann.

When actress Tamera Mowry named her daughter Ariah, she said it was a Hebrew name meaning "lion of God" -- which it is, if you consider Ariah a variation of Ariel. But many sources consider Ariah a spelling variation of the Italian Aria, meaning song or literally air.

Alaya has connections as a Buddhist term, and it could be a creative coinage, based on similarities to names like Alayna and Layla. In Buddhism, Alaya refers to the base consciousness—all of our memories, ideas, and desires. It's a lofty concept, and an attractive name, slowly on the rise since entering the US Top 1000 in 2009.

In epic poetry, the term aristeia is used to denote the climactic point where the hero/heroine has their finest hour. Aristeia feels at home with other big Greek names like Atalanta, Cassiopeia and Galatea. We think this name has potential for parents who think Poem, Saga and Rhapsody are too obvious.

In Buddhism, Dharma embodies the basic principles of cosmic existence--making it a fitting name for the hippyish character on the sitcom Dharma and Greg, whose middle name was Freedom.

An unusual old school name which is made more modern by that fashionable El- beginning.

Allaire, a last name in France. could make a first, with its light and airy feel.

Diamante was a commonly-used feminine name among Italian Jews in the Middle Ages. Today, it's more popular for boys than girls in the US.

Atalanta was a beautiful mythological maiden who refused to marry any man who couldn't beat her in a footrace -- quite a role model. This myth is found in Ovid's Metamorphoses and later in Swinburne's Atalantis in Calydon.

Hot star Ashton Kutcher is pushing this unisex choice toward the boys' camp, but its variation Ashtyn is on the rise.

Although Amos is experiencing somewhat of a revival among baby boys, it feels even fresher when applied as a girl name.

The term for a female baker was Baxter, which ironically feels less appropriate for a baby girl than Baker itself. Josephine Baker was an American-born French entertainer, French Resistance agent, and civil rights activist.

One of the oldest and most widely used compound names, now a bit dated but not as much so as its opposite Mary-Ann. The hyphen is optional.

Cait, pronounced like more popular sister Kate, is the form used when shortening Caitlin or any of the other Irish and Gaelic Cait-starting variations of Catherine.

This Cameron variation was popularized by actress Camryn Manheim and the character inTwitches of the same name. It also makes it more obviously feminine, which might appeal to some parents, considering the classic Cameron is a Top 100 choice for boys in the US.

Caitlyn is following all variations on the Irish classic Caitlin down the US baby name charts, following decades of popular usage. The original Anglicized form Kathleen is now starting to feel fresher than these more modern forms.

Somewhat light and silly on its own.

The middle name of the Travoltas' Ella, this French color alternative hasn't caught on with many other parents.