Film Noir Baby Names

The alcohol-laced member of the Randy-Candy-Mandy sorority of 1970s to 80s nickname names; now pretty much on the wagon.

One of those slender names, like Lena or Etta, that's used in several cultures and carries a range of meanings. But by being so many things, it doesn't feel decidedly like anything.

Too sugary sweet and inconsequential for a modern girl.

Free and fun name if you don't want to be pinned down to Noelle, Pasqua, or Valentine.

The field of nature names is constantly expanding to include all species of flowers and trees and animals and birds and even fish. In addition to its appeal for anglers, Pike recalls Zebulon Pike, the explorer who discovered and gave his name to Pike's Peak.

A thirteenth-century Tuscan saint, patron of homemakers, Zita is the kind of name that sounded really creative in an earlier era.

Velma likely originated as a phonetic spelling of the German name Wilma, itself derived from Wilhelmina. Velma Dinkley is a smart, if nerdy, character in Scooby Doo.

Has a musty 1940s feel. Try Georgia -- or Georgiana.

It's interesting how names imported to the US from other countries and cultures have fashion cycles of their own. Paulette along with cousins Annette and Claudette were the most fashionable French imports in the middle of the last century, only to sink from sight and be replaced by such current French favorites as Charlotte, Sophie, and Eloise. In general, feminizations of male names have faded in favor of gender-neutral choices, and Paul itself is off its own fashion peak. But Paulette has the same vintage charm as names like Margot and Josephine that are very much a la mode. And far from being extinct, Paulette hits that sweet spot of names that are familiar but not over-used. It was given to about 130 baby girls in the US last year, on par with May, Avalon, Jolee, Liza, and Vivianne. This is three times as many baby girls as were named Paulette in 2000, so while the name may still lie well beneath the Top 1000, it's very much on the way up.

Hardy is a spirited and durable un-Germanic German surname that is starting to be used in this country.

This elegant surname has great potential to turn into an unusual first name, especially with its literary associations to both Stephen and Hart Crane.

Friday became famous as a name via the sidekick character in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, morphing into a generic term for an all-around professional assistant, as in "girl Friday." As a word for the day of the week, Friday is associated with the old English goddess Frigg and the Roman goddess Venus, though the character makes Friday more of a male name.

Lovers of the languid South Carolina city might be attracted to this rich-sounding name. Could make an interesting update on Charles -- and can certainly work for a girl too. Actor Joey Lawrence used it for his daughter.

Gilda, although related to the words gold and gilded, has definitely tarnished. It once shimmered with the seductive image of Rita Hayworth in the film Gilda, then was associated with the beloved early Saturday Night Live star Gilda Radner. In opera, Gilda lives on as the name of the daughter of Rigoletto.

Its jaunty o-ending makes this name more appealing than most of its Germanic brothers, and we hope we're beyond the constant response to his name being "Where's Waldo?" The weighty reputation of writer and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson adds a measure of backbone to the name.

A super diminutive nickname name, and sometime Madonna nickname – it was how the British tabloids referred to her when she moved to London in the 1990s, which she found annoying until then husband Guy Ritchie said it stood for 'Your Majesty'. Madge Undersee is Katniss's best friend in The Hunger Games books.

Noel, the French word for Christmas has been given to both boys and girls born on that holiday since the Middle Ages. For girls it's often spelled Noelle.

A relatively common surname, Dixon would be an inventive way to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, the X form a lot livelier than the Dickson spelling, just as Dix is a more modern short form than Dick; it would be right at home alongside Dax and Jax.

Scandinavian names are fashionable these days, and Torsten is one that is used only occasionally: About 20 baby boys were named Torsten in the US last year.