Animal Names for Girls

An ancient Roman name that has never made it into the modern world.

Variant of Alafair

Once a cowboyish old man name, Clem is now more commonly heard as a nickname for the fashionable Clementine, meaning "merciful one". Clemency, Clemence and Clementia are other possible long forms.

Bleuenn is a name virtually unknown in the English-speaking world but trendy in its native France. Bleuenn's origins are in Brittany, in the north of France, and it's related to the Welsh Blodwen. Other spellings include Bleuen and Bleunwenn. This might give the perfect twist to a color name that feels too slight.

Aramide is a rare name in the US but better-known in Nigeria, where it's a choice from the Yoruba language.

Might Carlyle (or Carlisle) be the next Carly, which of course was the update on Carla? In 2015, 14 girls were given the Carlisle spelling (vs. 35 boys) but the Carlyle version did not make the SSA list for girls although it was registered for ten boys. But it's a name we think we'll hear more of for both genders.

The ancient Roman name that gave us Cecilia, Cecily, and related names. This spelling looks authentic, but might raise more pronunciation problems than it solves.

This beautiful celestial Indian name had a rise in 2022, following in the trends of other "-ani" ending names like Leilani and Imani. The character Devi from the hit show "Never Have I Ever" familiarized the world with another beautiful name of the same root.

The name recently given to their daughter by Susan and Robert Downey, Jr. is pronounced like Avery and may be seen as a kree8tiv spelling variation of that popular unisex name or a girlish short form of Avraham, the Biblical Hebrew form of Abraham.

Dacia is an ancient place-name -- it was in Eastern Europe -- as lacy as Dacey, but more substantial.

Elvi is one of those elusive names that fit in yet stand out. It's similar to currently trendy girl names such as Ellie and Evie but maintains distinction.