Desert Names

Acacia is an attractive, rarely used Greek flower name enhanced by its popular beginning-and-ending-with 'a'-construct, and is gradually beginning to catch on as a new member of the stylish girl names starting with A.

Cairo is an exciting place name possibility with upbeat o ending and an on-trend first syllable. Debuting in the US Top 1000 in 2015, it has been climbing ever since, and, as of 2023, it is given to more than 1000 babies each year.

Canyon is a unique baby name evocative of natural splendor and the old Steve Canyon comic-strip heroism, making it an intriguing new word-name possibility.

Spicy.

This recently coined respelling of Cole darkens its image.

It's a beautiful burnished metal -- but also slang for policeman.

Nickname name from the era of Father Knows Best, though we can see it making something of a comeback, a la Clover and Pippa. Cricket has new potential especially since it has recently been chosen by Busy Philipps. Still, it's one of the quirkier girl names starting with C.

Dune is a name of several layers. It's a modern nature name, like Ocean, Bay and Reef, although rarer, conjuring up images of breezy sand dunes on summer beach days.

Flint is one of the new macho names on the rise today, part old-school tough guy, part rebel. You won't find a tougher, steelier-sounding name; it's part of a genre on the rise along with cousins Slate, Stone and Steel.

There's a whole quarry of rocky names parents are now considering: Slate, Flint, etc. , but this one is particularly hard-edged and problematic.

Mesa is the term for a flat-topped mountain, derived from the Spanish word for "table".

Mica is not the same name -- though it sounds the same -- as Micah, but the h makes it feel more masculine.

Resonant place-name of the beautiful Southern California desert.

Western place-name that feels equally appropriate for both genders. Note: Natives say rhyme that second syllable with had, so it's not nehv-AH-da.

An evocative, windswept choice that is part of the third generation of western-influenced names, picking up where first Jesse and then Dakota left off, though with a slight feminine edge.

Has a lively and swaggering sound, and also some unfortunate associations with Reno, city of gambling and failed marriages.

Sage is an evocatively fragrant herbal name that also connotes wisdom, giving it a double advantage. It entered the Top 1000 at about the same time for both genders in the early 1990s, but it has pulled ahead for the girls. Toni Collette named her daughter Sage Florence.

A beautiful and evocative place-name that deserves wider use.

A place name with a deep Southern accent, the once-obscure Savannah shot to fame, with others of its genre, on the heels of the best seller Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which was set in the mossy Georgia city of Savannah. Originally a substitute for the overused Samantha, Savannah is now becoming overused itself, long among the top girls' names starting with S.

Slate, Stone and Steel are on the rise, so why not Shale?