515+ Middle Names for Girls

Many virtue names have long been in style or have seen a resurgence in recent years. Happy, however joyous, seems unlikely to join this trend. This could be because it doesn't have a solid history of being popularly used (in comparison to Joy or Hope) and because it's such a familiarly used word in day to day life (unlike Verity or Felicity).

The late tennis great Arthur Ashe (whose wife was a photographer) pioneered word names when he used this for his daughter. It would make an interesting first or middle name possibility for parents involved with photography.

Spiritual word names are becoming more and more popular – think Peace, Bodhi, Zen and Psalm – and Spirit is among the rarer options, given to a couple dozen baby girls each year in the US. It's the name of the horse in the kids' TV show Spirit.

ALLEGRA is a delicate ballet-dancer name; ALLEGRO, which means a fast-paced movement in music, is stronger and more vibrant.

In geography, a meridian is a line drawn around the curve of the Earth between the North and South Poles. The term comes from Latin meridianus, meaning "pertaining to midday", and the association with midday has led to the word gaining an added figurative meaning of "pinnacle; culmination".

This geographic name has lots of Gallic elan. France Nuyen is a French-Vietnamese actress who starred in the Broadway hit The World of Suzie Wong.

Used in France as a male name, this would make an appealing and unusual choice, as would two other Gallic month names, Avril and Mai.

Fresh and fragrant nature name more apt to be used for a boy.

If Erykah Badu can name her son Seven, why can't you name your daughter (or son) this? Eleven has recently gotten a lot of attention via the character on the TV show Stranger Things.

Generally used in conjunction with another name to form a religious phrase -- for instance the daughter of rapper DMX is called Praise Mary Ella.

Name that enjoyed some popularity early in the 20th century but now is locked in another, ahem, era.

This old-fashioned word for poetry has some antiquated charm but doesn't exactly roll off the tongue.

Not yet on the place-name map, this name has Shakespearean ties via the Duke Of Albany character in King Lear.

Spacey.

The mythical daughter of Eros and Psyche becomes a modern-sounding word name. Danger: could be seen as X-rated.

Ochre is an exceedingly rare name, found only a few times since the nineteenth century, and not showing up in any current data. Yet it means much the same thing as popular Sienna (another clay coloured with iron oxide) and sounds similar to fashionable Oakley. A strong earthy nature name that is both unusual and evocative.

Timber as a name is given to slightly more girls than boys each year. It's actually got a cute sound, ala Kimber(ly) and may be an original tree choice for a girl. Timberly and Timberlee are also found (but not encouraged).

Yarrow is a flowering herb that grows wild in Europe and North America, and has long been used in several Native American and European cultures as a healing plant. Named for the mythical god Achille, Yarrow is a symbol of enduring love.

While Austin is a popular boys' name, this spelling, honoring novelist Jane, nudges the name toward gender-neutral, chosen last year for 67 baby boys and 57 girls.