Names That Mean Grace

Pronounced just like Jean in the English-speaking world, but as the more unusual zhahn in France, this has sailed away with the first wave of French favorites: Denise, Michelle, et soeurs.

Anneli is one of the hundreds of Anne variations with an intriguing spelling. This name has been popular throughout Scandinavia over time and would certainly translate easily to English-speaking countries.

Zayn and the more Western-friendly Zain sound exactly like the popular Zane but have a different root, in Arabic and African cultures. The name was made familiar to Europeans and Americans by British singer-songwriter Zayn, born Zain Malik. This is an easily-translated choice for a family that wants to bridge cultures, but you have to accept that people will be forever spelling the name "wrong".

Albert Einstein's first wife was Mileva Maric, a Serbian student and his classmate at the Zurich Polytechnic. (Her childhood nickname was Mitza.) With the newfound popularity of Mila, this obscure Old Slavic name may be discovered outside of its native land.

Though slightly haughtier and less accessible than cousin Edmond, Esmond could appeal to some parents seeing a distinguished appellation. It began being used (albeit sparingly) in England in the nineteenth century, possibly influenced by William Makepeace Thackeray's novel The History of Henry Esmond.

Could be confused with the much less captivating Leanne.

With Old European vibes, Johan is a variant of the classic John, similar to the Latin, Hebrew, and Germanic forms, Iohannes, Yohanan, and Johannes. Conjuring up the image of the classical composer Brahms or the astronomer Kepler, while still feeling timeless and distinctive, Johan has been in the US Top 600 for most of the 21st century, helped along by Heidi Klum and Seal using it for their son in 2006.

The ultimate midcentury nickname, retaining a good measure of retro charm, was chosen for her son by Mira Sorvino.

Although Gracia is the literal Spanish translation of Grace and is used as the Grace equivalent in Spanish-speaking countries, where it's pronounced grah-see-a, it's also a long-time if unusual Grace variation pronounced gray-sha. You might consider Gracia if Grace is getting too commonplace for you.

Animated Gaelic name popularized by singer Sheena Easton, also brings to mind Sheena, Queen of the Jungle, the Amazonian comic book and TV series heroine. Sine is considered to be and English equivalent of Jane or Jean.

Interesting Old Testament name that embraces many traditional female attributes; also name of a place in the Jordan Valley. In the Bible, a daughter of King Ammon and wife of Solomon.

Those "Where's Gretel?" jokes will get old pretty fast.

Melodious and unusual form of a name with an uncountable number of variations. Many will understand it as the more down-to-earth Annalee.

A chief member of the tribe of Benjamin, and another obscure Old Testament name that few parents, even those tired of Aaron and Zachary, would consider. But with a pronunciation that rhymes with Gannon, it has the strong, straightforward, two-syllable sound that's in step with modern style.

Combination of Mary and Ann which has been more popular than Marianne in recent years, although still below the Top 1000, after a peak in the 1940s.

It's difficult to imagine anyone using the first name Jonesy -- and in fact, in the most recent US tally, there were nearly 100 babies named Jones but none named Jonesy. Still, this is a name that many people with Jones for a name, last or first, end up being known by, and as a nickname, it's sorta cute in a Skip, Chip, Bitsy kind of way.

More modern options: Shaw, Shay, or even Sean.

Evanna is the name of a Harry Potter actress who pronounces it ee-vah-na. This might be considered another international feminine form of the many variations of John; Ivana, Giovanna, and even Joan are cousins of Evanna. It could also be a compound name, combining Eva and Anna.

Shawn is one name that's become less unisex and more distinctly male over time in all its spellings, given to only 14 baby girls and over 500 boys in the US in the most recent year counted. But at its peak in the early 1970s, it was a Top 200 baby name for girls in the US, given to nearly 2000 baby girls... and 12,000 boys in this spelling alone.

The mononymous Colombian-born singer inspired a popularity blip in the 90s and early 00s.