Stylish Choices Outside the Top 1000: 2015 Girls

Syd Nagoshi via Instagram

It can be really frustrating to see your top choices break into the top 1000--no one wants people to discover their favorite name! If you are looking for a name that's guaranteed to be uncommon, outside the top 1000 is the best place to look. None of these names were used over 263 times--that being said, it's impossible to tell how many of these are being used as nicknames for more popular names. The names are ordered from most uses to least: 263 to 5. Make sure to come back on Friday for the boys list, and check out the 2014 list to see what's changed.

If I Could Name 100 Girls: Volume Three

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About one year ago, I posted my second round of "If I Could Name 100 Girls." It quickly became a popular post, so I thought we'd make it a yearly tradition. So, one year later, here are the names I would choose for 100 daughters. The names that are new to the list are italicized, and the ones that got bumped off are noted at the bottom. Tell me, what would you name 100 girls? (it's harder than it looks!)

Agatha
Aldine
Alouette
Amelie
Anais
Annika
Anouk
Avis
Bee
Birdie
Bonnie
Cameo
Celestine
Celia
Circe
Clea
Clementine
Clove
Coco
Darcy
Delphine
Dorothy
Dulcie
Edie
Eliza
Elsie
Esme
Fatima
Faye
Flannery
Frances
Freya
Frieda
Gemma
Georgia
Greta
Hero
Holiday
Ida
Irene
Isabeau
Ivy
Jane
Kalea
Lark
Leonie
Liddy
Lilou
Liv
Lotte
Lucinda
Margot
Martha
Millie
Minna
Moon
Nancy
Nell
Nettie
Noemi
Nona
Noor
Olive
Oona
Orla
Ottilie
Paloma
Penny
Peridot
Phoebe
Pia
Pimm
Pippa
Plum
Poet
Pomeline
Poppy
Posy
Prairie
Prune
Quebec
Quilla
Romy
Rosie
Ruthie
Season
Solange
Soleil
Sosie
Susanna
Tallulah
Tilda
Umbria
Umeko
Viola
Winnie
Xanthe
Zadie
Zanna
Zinnia


Who's New: Agatha, Bee, Cameo, Celia, Clove, Delphine, Dorothy, Dulcie, Eliza, Elsie, Fatima, Faye, Flannery, Freya, Irene, Kalea, Liv, Millie, Moon, Nettie, Noemi, Noor, Oona, Penny, Pia, Prairie, Prune, Rosie, Ruthie, Tallulah, Umbria, Umeko, Winnie, Zinnia

Who Left: Aine, Audrey, Bay, Citron, Dot, Elke, Elsa, Emmeline, Evie, Flora, Greer, Helena, Imogen, Ireland, Kit, Lillias, Lilo, Louisa, Marais, North, Oceane, Reverie, Romilly, Ruth, Scout, Silvie, Simone, Sloane, Suki, Tate, Tess, Vienna, Willa

Literary Namesake Names

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November is National Novel Writing Month, and seeing as the month is coming to close, it's only fitting that we take a look at literary namesake names today. There are so many wonderful authors that you could look to for naming inspiration. I've only coved a few in this post--mostly writers with distinctive names or ones who are heavily associated with their names. Which ones would you add?

Agatha--Agatha Christie
Alcott--Louisa May Alcott
Anais--Anais Nin
Angelou--Maya Angelou
Astrid--Astrid Lindgren
Austen--Jane Austen
Beatrix--Beatrix Potter
Bronte--the Bronte sisters
Carroll--Lewis Carroll
Eliot--T.S. Eliot
Ernest--Ernest Hemingway
Fitzgerald--F. Scott Fitzgerald
Flannery--Flannery O'Connor
Franz--Franz Kafka
Gertrude--Gertrude Stein
Hawthorne--Nathaniel Hawthorne
Joan--Joan Didion
Jules--Jules Verne
Oscar--Oscar Wilde
Roald--Roald Dahl
Salinger--J.D. Salinger
Sylvia--Sylvia Plath
Tennessee--Tennessee Williams
Truman--Truman Capote
Wharton--Edith Wharton
Wilder--Laura Ingalls Wilder
Woolf--Virginia Woolf
Zora--Zora Neale Hurston

Names with "an"

I recently got an email from a reader asking for some naming inspiration.

Fiona writes:

My first 2 children both have a theme of "an" - Marianne and Kassandra. It happened accidentally, but the more we think about future names, the more we seem attracted to this sound. It would be great to have some help and inspiration please! 
Our second child was only born this year, so we are jumping the gun a little but we do plan a 3rd child (hopefully, as obviously thanks to mother nature's blips, having a child is not in our complete control!) and our experience is that it is never too early to start thinking about names.

With many thanks,
Fiona 

Past the page break I have put together an exhaustive list of names with -an in them. I've italicised the ones I think work best with Marianne and Kassandra. Feel free to leave your thoughts or suggestions for Fiona in the comments. If you have a naming question that you would like me to post on the blog, feel free to email me at skihm (at) hotmail (dot) com. 

Stylish Choices Outside the Top 1000: 2014 Girls

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We all know the parents with that one requirement when it comes to names: Nothing inside the top 1000. Who knows, maybe it's you! I'll admit, I can be a bit of a name snob myself--I do prefer my favorites to be practically unique. All the names after the jump are outside the top 1000, in order of most used to least used (Esperanza with 257 uses in 2014, Romilly with 5). What's your favorite? Let me know.

Long Middle Names: Girls

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Long middle names can sound quite fantastical on girls, especially when paired with a long first name. But even if the first name is relatively short, the long middle name always does a nice job of balancing it out. I have 100 three syllable names that make lovely middle names for you to look at today. Of course, there are many more that did not make this list, so tell me--on this list or otherwise--what's your favorite long middle name for a girl?

Abigail
Alaska
Alouette
Alyssa
Amandine
Amelie
Anais
Annabel
Anneliese
Ariel
Augusta
Aurora
Beatrice
Bonita
Cameo
Carissa
Carmela
Cassandra
Cecilia
Celestine
Clarissa
Claudia
Clementine
Coralie
Dahlia
Dominique
Elena
Eloise
Emily
Eulalie
Francesca
Gabrielle
Geneva
Genevieve
Gloria
Helena
Hollister
Imogen
Isabeau
Joanna
Josephine
Jubilee
Juliette
Juniper
Kerensa
Keziah
Lavender
Leona
Liatris
Lilia
Linnea
Lolita
Louisa
Lucinda
Madigan
Margaret
Maria
Marigold
Marina
Marisol
Melody
Meredith
Mignonette
Mirabel
Naomi
Nigella
Ottilie
Paloma
Peridot
Pomeline
Querida
Quintessa
Reverie
Romilly
Rosalie
Rosemary
Salome
Santana
Saskia
Sienna
Sierra
Simona
Sophia
Umbria
Verity
Veronique
Vienna
Viola
Violet
Virginia
Vivian
Ximena
Zahara
Zinnia

10 French Names You Never Thought of Using: Girls

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You guessed it, the next leg of this series is going to be by culture. Today we are going to look at French names, a perrenial favorite among American parents. If you're looking for something beyond Gabrielle or Vivienne, consider one of the following.

Anais- Anais is the lovely French version of Anne, and most people are familiar with her as the name of author Anais Nin. She's got a quirky cute feel, perfect for the daughter of creative parents.

Axelle- French names aren't known for being rebellious, but Axelle is just that. She has legitimate French roots, though most people will think you just made an addition to Axel. Nevertheless, she is an interesting pick. I'm putting Axelle on my list of future celebrity baby names.

Celestine- If you've read this blog for a while, you will know how much I love Celestine. She's been meantioned in six previous blog posts, which is a lot more than most other names can say. Celestine is absolutely gorgeous. For those of you too afraid to put her in the first name position, make her a middle for a short first name.

Delphine- Delphine means exactly what she sounds like, "dolphin." She's a name I often hear meantioned among the baby name crowd, but I've never encountered one in real life. Though most likely the average Joe on the street has never heard of her.

Francoise- Frances and Francis are on the rise. Francesca and Francisco have hit plauteus. The impeccibly French Francoise has never even broken the top 1000, making her a truely unique pick. Adorable nicknames Frannie and Francie are a bonus.

Leonor- Eleanor is just getting more and more popular, but her exotic variant Leonor is practically unheard of. She lends herself to the nicknames Leo and Leonie, which Eleanor doesn't offer.

Lilou- Lilou is a catch-all nickname for all L names in France, and even non-L names as well (I know a French Amelie called Lilou). She's a whimsical option, and a charming alternative to Lily.

Maelys- Maelys has all the right sounds. She's pronounced (may-LEES)--her long vowels and soft consonants make her a great contendor for parents who love liquidy names. There is normally an umlaut over the e, which makes her kind of tricky for American use. However, that should never be a deal breaker.

Magalie- Part Margaret, part Amelie, Magalie is the best French name you've never heard of. She'd make a great import.

Pomeline- Pomeline wins for my all time favorite guilty pleasure name. I would never use her on my own child, but man is she gorgeous. Pomme (the French word for apple) is a sweet nickname.

If I Could Name 100 Girls

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One of my very first posts was called "If I Could Name 100 Girls." A lot has changed for me since 2012, and my taste has definitely shifted. I thought I'd bring it back today to show the evolution of my favorite names.

Aine
Aldine
Alouette
Amelie
Anais
Annika
Anouk
Audrey
Avis
Bay
Birdie
Bonnie
Celestine
Circe
Citron
Clea
Clementine
Coco
Darcy
Dot
Edie
Elke
Elsa
Emmeline
Esme
Evie
Flora
Frances
Frieda
Gemma
Georgia
Greer
Greta
Helena
Hero
Holliday
Imogen
Ida
Ireland
Isabeau
Ivy
Jane
Kit
Lark
Leonie
Liddy
Lillias
Lilo
Lilou
Lotte
Louisa
Lucinda
Marais
Margot
Martha
Minna
Nancy
Nell
Nona
North
Oceane
Olive
Orla
Ottilie
Paloma
Peridot
Phoebe
Pimm
Pippa
Plum
Poet
Pomeline
Poppy
Posy
Quebec
Quilla
Reverie
Romilly
Romy
Ruth
Scout
Season
Silvie
Simone
Sloane
Solange
Soleil
Sosie
Suki
Susanna
Tate
Tess
Tilda
Vienna
Viola
Willa
Xanthe
Zadie
Zanna