Girl Names

One of those names you may not even be aware of if you haven't been paying attention to recent naming trends, Alani was given to more than 700 baby girls in the US in one recent year, to be the second most popular feminization of Alan after Alana. It's certainly the most modern-sounding female version of Alan.

Sounds a bit like Harley pronounced with a cockney accent.

Boys' favorite retains more of its poetic, windswept quality when used for a girl, as Robin Wright and Sean Penn did. Alyssa Milano gave her daughter Elizabella Dylan as a middle name.

Riley -- one of the most popular unisex names -- is trendier now for girls though for boys it's a classic, ALWAYS ranking in the US Top 1000.

This spirited Gaelic classic, which became popular in Ireland via the illustrious twelfth century king Rory O'Connor, makes a highly energetic choice, now used for either sex. Rory's gender split is still trending boyward; it's one of the coolest boys' names starting with R.

Seren is a top girls' name in Wales – and a lovely choice almost unknown elsewhere. Seren, in the Sirona form, was an ancient goddess of the hot springs.