873+ Names That Mean God

There are now more boys than girls given the name Joan each year in the US, although the two are distinct names. The masculine version, pronounced with the emphasis on the second syllable, is among the top names in Spain.

In 2010, baby boys named Ari outnumbered baby girls 4 to 1; today, there are nearly equal numbers of boys and girls named Ari. And that's only counting the babies who receive Ari as a full name. Ari can also be short for not only Ariel but Aria, Arya, Ariana, and any other name starting with Ari. Ari entered the US Top 1000 for girls in 2016.

Now the best-selling version of this infinitely varied name, Makayla incorporates the also-popular Kayla. Makayla and Mikayla have now left the original Michaela far behind.

Tobias-related name that makes an attractive and modern-sounding form of the biblical original. It was recently chosen by Karolina Kurkova for her son.

Lilibet is the fanciful short form of Elizabeth first noted as the childhood nickname of Britain's queen and now made contemporary as the name of the newborn daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex — aka Harry and Meghan. The nickname Lilibet originally derived from Elizabeth II's first pronunciation of her own name.

The sweetest and most sensitive of the pet names for Elizabeth, now also one of the most dated.

Drawn from old record books, Kiah is an antiquated nickname that feels perfectly appropriate for modern times -- maybe more so than father name Hezekiah.

This feminine form of Theodosius has long been buried deep in the attic, but might be a good discovery for the parent who wants to move beyond Theodora. Vice President Aaron Burr named a daughter Theodosia ("Dear Theodosia" is a song in the smash musical Hamilton), and it was the birth name of silent screen vamp Theda Bara. Theodosia actually appeared on the US popularity lists in the 1880s and 90s.

Joel is one of those boys’ names that's never been super-popular yet has never been UNpopular either -- it's been in the Top 400 in the US since we started keeping statistics in 1880. So it's inevitable that its female form Joelle would gain visibility too, and indeed Joelle was used most widely during Joel's reign in the Top 100, from the late 1960s through the early 1990s.

Elyse hasn't been heard much since the 80s, but it's beginning to be reconsidered as a possibIlity again, now that it's not so much seen as a Mom name, as it was in the TV show "Family Ties." A spelling variation of Elise, it's another variation of Elizabeth. Many parents today would opt for Eliza.

A Top 100 name from the 1930s all the way through the 1950s, it's now firmly in Mom -- or Grandma -- land and supplanted for babies by Joanna.....or even great-grandmother Josephine. In its heyday, it had a host of variations, including JoAnn and Jo-Anne.

Popular in its own right in Germany and definitely makes a more intriguing and grownup short form of the classic Timothy than Timmy or even Tim.

This name has two derivations. One is as a member of the well-populated Alice/Alicia family (with an overly literal spelling), which gives it the meaning "noble"; the other is an Urdu name with the meaning "protected by God." If you're going with the first derivation, we suggest you stick with the classic and beautiful Alicia.

Lemuel is a neglected Old Testament name, with the friendly nickname Lem, that we're surprised hasn't been picked up on by parents who have known too many Samuels.

Though the most famous Elia, screenwriter Kazan, was male, this name sounds like a spin on many popular girls' names, from Ella to Ellie to Isla and Leah. While the Italian pronunciation has the middle syllable as LEE, making it closer to the original Elijah would give the middle syllable a long I sound -- eh-LYE-ah.

Dionysius derives from Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, revelry and fertility. This Romanized spelling has been used for poets, soldiers, and saints throughout the centuries, but is hardly ever seen today.

This name of an influential Old Testament king of Judah is one that would challenge even the most adventurous biblical name-seeker, but it does have the modernizing short forms Zeke or Kiah.

Sweet but sleek, and distinctive, Liesl is an old German nickname-name for Elisabeth. It might have once seemed inextricably tied to to its country of origin, but now, like Elsa, Enzo, Saoirse, Freya, Soren, and Heidi, it leans more towards being international and European chic.

All s-ending names are fashionable right now, and Azarius has a handsome sound. With Azariah confidently in the Top 1000, and variations Azaire and Azair having small moments of their own, Azarius might be next.

It's the name of an Old Testament archangel that's symbolically given to boys born during Chanukah, but the possibility of unsavory nicknames (urinal?) make the short form Uri a better bet.