You Can’t Call It “It”!

 

So it seems not everyone is going retro after all.  

Salma has Valentina Paloma, Jen & Ben have Seraphina Rose Elizabeth, Carnie has a Luciana Bella, and now enter Ana Ortiz’s brand spankin’ new Paloma Louise.  

Fluid, ultra “pink” monikers have been the rage for some time.  These star babies may help give parents impetus to look beyond usual suspects Isabella, Olivia, Michaela, Gabriella, Daniella, and even Francesca, and choose a name that is familiar yet far more rare.  A glimpse at the breadth of these names’ origins suggests that a polysyllabic name ending in the letter A connotes femininity the world over.   Be forewarned though, one day your little Jacinta might just prefer to go by Jace.  

 

Anneliese- A contraction of Anne and Elisabeth, meaning “grace” + “consecrated to God.”  Ahn-na-LEE-zah is the four syllable German pronunciation.  

Araminta- English, unknown meaning.

Artemisia- Greek goddess of the moon and of hunting.  For a trimmed down version, see Artemis. 

Aurelia- Latin, “golden.”  This feels like a top 100 choice, yet remains to be seen in the top 1000.

Calista- Greek, “beautiful.”  Miss Flockhart might have brought this to our attention, but she’s been around long enough people no longer associate it just with her. 

Delphina- Ancient Roman, from the Greek Delphi, which may be related to “dolphin.”

Eleonora- Italian, German, Dutch, Polish, from the Old French Alienor which means “the other Aenor”, after Eleanor of Aquitaine’s mother. 

Elisabetta- One of Italy’s answers to Elizabeth, “consecrated to God,”  the exact same meaning and ancestry as Isabella.

Evangeline- Greek, “good news”– if you can get away from the Evangelical association (depending on your point of view).

Felicity- From the Latin, felicitas for “happiness.”

Florencia- Spanish variation on Florence, “flourishing and prosperous.”

Guinevere- Welsh, “fair breasted.”  Guinevere is not the most revered of heroines.  

Hermione- Greek, “messenger.”  Please let’s move beyond HP and go back to her roots!  

Indira- Sanskrit for “beauty.”  Indira Gandhi is a worthy namesake.  It’s also another name for the Hindu goddess Lakshmi.

Iolanthe- Possibly coined by Gilbert and Sullivan for their eponymous opera.

Isadora- Greek, “gift of Isis” (Isis was an Egyptian goddess)- Bjork and Matthew Barney.

Jessamine – English pretty variant of Jasmine.

Jacinta- Greek by way of Spain and Portugal, “hyacinth.”  Also, Jacinda.

Katarina, Ekaterina- Russian, Macedonian, and Bulgarian forms of Katherine, normally associated with Greek katharos which means ”pure.

Kerensa- Cornish, “love.”

Letitia- From the Latin Laetita, “joy, happiness.”  Not to be confused with Lateisha.  Italian Letizia, French Laetitia.

Leilani- Hawaiian, “heavenly flowers.”  Another beauty to suggest to Nevaeh lovers.

Lorelei- Germanic mythological siren who lured sailors to their deaths.  Still, a pretty name popularized by the “Gilmore Girls.”

Magdalena- Pan-European Biblical name from the Hebrew for “tower.”

Mirabella- From the Latin mirabilis ”wonderful.”  Also, Mirabelle, Mirabel.

Mireya- Spanish, “admirable.”  Also Mirella, Mireille.

Nadezhda- Slavic, “hope.”

Nerissa- Invented by Shakespear for Merchant of Venice, but since used for various fictional witches.  May derive from the Greek Nereis meaning “nymph.”

Octavia- Ancient Roman, “eighth.”

Ottilia- German, “wealth.”  Also, Ottilie.

Paloma- Spanish, “dove” (and pigeon).  Paloma Picasso said of her name that it had been one of her greatest gifts. 

Persephone- Greek mythology, she was abducted by Hades to the underworld but allowed to return for part of the year.  Her arrival represents the start of Spring.

Priscilla- Ancient Roman, Biblical, derives from Priscus, a Roman family name which means “ancient.”  Indeed the name is ancient and warrants revival.  Also, Prisca, Priscille. 

Renata- Italian, “rebirth”, and deserving of one.

Rosalia- Derived from Rose, she was a 12th century Sicilian saint who died as a child. 

Sapphira- Sapphire or “lapis lazuli”, she was killed by God in the New Testament for lying.  See Eudora Welty’s Sapphira and the Slave Girl.  Better known as the dragon in Eragon.  

Serafina- “Fiery one”, from the Seraphim, highest order of angels.  Baby Seraphina Affleck did set this name on fire.  Also Seraphine, Zerafina. 

Tatiana- Ancient Roman by way of Eastern Europe, and used by Shakespeare in Midsummer’s Nights Dream.

Valentina- Roman, “brave and healthy.”  I was once told when I fell in love with this name ten years ago that if I ever used it for a daughter, she “could never be a feminist.”  I contend there’s a new brand of feminism in town. 

Violetta- Italian operatic form of Violet, in Verdi’s “La Traviata.”  Also Violette.

Xiomara- Spanish, “famous in battle”, as was one in “America’s Next Top Model.”

 

 

Above: Madame Alexander dolls.