This is a list of common names used throughout the English
speaking world. They are listed with a note on whether or not
they are appropriate, and a short message from out founder regarding
their use. Please note that any name not listed here is probably
inappropriate for use by a parent for their girl child. However,
you may ignore these guidelines under one of two conditions:
That said, here is the Index of Girls' Names, in alphabetical
order. The source is 20,001 Names for Baby by Carol Wallace
(Avon Books, 1992) This may take a little while to load, so be
patient. (We are too lazy at the moment to divide this into separate
pages, but it may happen Real Soon Now.)
| Name |
Use? |
Note |
| Abigail |
OK |
But use nickname "Abby" |
| Adrian |
No |
A man's name, use "Adrienne" |
| Agatha |
OK |
But you'd better have a good nickname ready |
| Agnes |
OK |
See above. |
| Aileen/Eileen |
No |
Three words. Dexy's. Midnight. Runners. |
| Aisha |
No |
Favored wife of Mohammed, so skip if you're not
Muslim |
| Alanna/Lana |
No |
The female of "Alan" is "Helen" |
| Alexandria/Alexandra |
OK |
Nicknames include Sandy and Sasha |
| Alice/Allison |
OK |
No Alisa/Alyssa/Alissa debates here |
| Amanda |
OK |
Nickname "Mandy" is acceptable |
| Amber |
No |
Too easy for experienced punsters |
| Amelia |
No |
This is French, use the English "Emily" |
| Amy |
OK |
Avoid odious misspellings |
| Anastasia |
OK |
This is the long form of "Stacy" |
| Andrea |
OK |
Be warned, it means "manly" |
| Angela |
OK |
But "Angelica" is too pretentious |
| Anita |
No |
Similarity to "I need a..." is invitation
to puns |
| Ann/Anne/Anna |
OK |
We'll have none of this "Annemarie",
"Annabel", "Annette" nonsense |
| April |
OK |
Not for kids born in April, that's too cutesy |
| Ashley |
No |
It's a last name, and besides, Ashley Wilkes
was a man |
| Audrey |
OK |
Please, no "Aubrey" |
| Barbara |
OK |
A wide variety of nicknames, we recommend "Bonnie" |
| Beatrice |
OK |
We can also accept the original "Beatrix" |
| Bernadette |
No |
Too French |
| Bernice |
No |
Go with the more common variant "Veronica" |
| Bertha |
No |
As in "Big Bertha"? |
| Bethany |
No |
Use "Elizabeth" |
| Beverly |
OK |
That's two "e"s, not three |
| Blair |
No |
Blair Witch. Blair Warner. Need I say more? |
| Blossom |
No |
Or any flower name, for that matter |
| Brandy |
No |
Go back and look at the Unfortunate
Connotations page |
| Brenda |
OK |
But it may mean "stinking hair" |
| Bridget |
OK |
Although there has never been a dark-haired "Bridget"
in history |
| Brittany |
No |
Ever been to Brittany? Bo-ring! |
| Caitlin |
No |
We discussed this over at "Let
Me Spell That For You" |
| Callista |
No |
Isn't that an asteroid? |
| Candace |
No |
'Cause the nickname "Candy" is just
asking for it |
| Carol/Caroline |
OK |
Although "Carol" is a man's name in
Romania |
| Casey |
No |
We frown upon unisex names |
| Cassandra |
No |
Classics majors know the reason |
| Catherine |
OK |
But "Kate" and "Katie" are
spelled with "K"s, regardless of "Catherine"/"Katherine" |
| Charity |
No |
See "Abstract Qualities"
and the First Law |
| Charlotte |
OK |
Despite awful variant "Lolita", and,
even worse, "Charo" |
| Chelsea |
No |
Means "port"- Freudians can take it
from there |
| Chloe |
OK |
And watch foreigners struggle to pronounce it |
| Christina |
OK |
"Christine" is French, so skip it |
| Clara |
OK |
"Claire" is French. Why can't they
keep their names on their side of the Channel? |
| Claudia |
No |
Means "lame" |
| Cody |
No |
Unisex, schmunisex |
| Colleen |
OK |
Be warned, no real Irish women are named
"Colleen" |
| Cora |
No |
Invented by James Fenimore Cooper, a mediocre
author at best |
| Courtney |
No |
Means "court-dweller". Mamas, don't
let your babies grow up to be lawyers. |
| Crystal |
No |
As in "Crystal Pepsi"? |
| Cynthia |
OK |
Please, call her "Cindy" |
| Dana |
OK |
Means "from Denmark", so if you hate
Denmark, don't use it |
| Danielle |
OK |
Despite association with Danielle Steele |
| Daryl |
No |
It's a last name, a boy's name, a place name,
and French. Strike four! |
| Denise |
OK |
About time somebody revived this one |
| Desiree |
No |
Names with accent marks are strictly forbidden |
| Diana |
OK |
But don't you dare name her after Diana
Spencer |
| Dominique |
No |
Old enough to remember the Singing Nun? |
| Donna |
OK |
Remember, this is uncommon now |
| Dora |
No |
That's a kind of column, right? |
| Doris |
OK |
Not just for old people, it worked for Doris
Day |
| Dorothy |
No |
Any drunken lout can think of a "Wizard
of Oz" joke here |
| Drew |
No |
A boy's name, and a nickname, too |
| Ebony |
No |
Especially if a) you're white or b) her sister
is named Ivory |
| Edith |
OK |
You can call her "Eddie" if you want |
| Edna |
No |
We think of Dame Edna now |
| Elaine/Eleanor |
OK |
Centuries-old and acceptable variants of "Helen" |
| Elizabeth |
OK |
A glut of nicknames here |
| Ellen |
OK |
What's with all these variants of "Helen"? |
| Emily |
OK |
Dates back to Chaucer |
| Emma |
OK |
Jane Austen fans, take heart |
| Erica |
OK |
But there's only one "Ricki" |
| Erin |
OK |
Though you'll search in vain for an "Erin"
in Ireland |
| Esther |
OK |
Hey, it worked for Esther Williams |
| Ethel |
No |
Associated with Merman or Rosenberg |
| Eugenia |
OK |
This is the root of "Gina" |
| Eve |
OK |
Name book says, "A clever name for the first
girl in a family of boys." Yuk, yuk. Don't do that. |
| Felicia |
OK |
Please, no "Felicity" |
| Fiona |
No |
Almost as many Irish names in here as French |
| Florence |
OK |
If you're Italian, "Firenza" |
| Gabrielle |
OK |
But don't tell her you named her for a character
on "Xena" |
| Gertrude |
OK |
Call her "Trudy", no matter how much
you like "E.T." |
| Gillian |
OK |
Dates back to the Middle Ages, so go ahead, geeks! |
| Gloria |
No |
Invented by Nazi sympathizer George Bernard Shaw |
| Grace |
No |
See "Abstract Qualities"
and remember the First Law |
| Genevieve |
OK |
The only acceptable long form of "Gwen"
or "Wendy" |
| Hannah |
No |
It'll just be confused with "Anna" |
| Harriet |
No |
Why name a kid for a character in "Born
Loser"? |
| Heather |
OK |
Actually an English name, not Scottish or Irish |
| Heidi |
No |
Unless you teach her to yodel |
| Helen |
OK |
A buttload of variants |
| Hillary |
OK |
The one-L variant is for boys, and don't name
her for that Hillary |
| Holly |
OK |
Not for a December baby, that's just tacky |
| Irene |
OK |
Nobody remembers "Goodnight, Irene"
anymore |
| Jacqueline |
No |
Kennedy who? |
| Jamie |
OK |
This isn't a boy's name anymore |
| Jane/Janet/Janice |
OK |
She'll be the only one on the block |
| Jasmine |
No |
Invented by Iranians. Their country
doesn't like us very much |
| Jennifer |
OK |
Of Cornish origin. Tee hee- Cornish |
| Jessica |
OK |
Believe it or not, there's one in
Shakespeare |
| Jewel |
No |
And move out of that van! |
| Jill |
OK |
Best if used as a nickname for Gillian
or Juliana |
| Joan |
OK |
Go ahead, hippies |
| Jocelyn |
No |
"If I could be the condom queen..." |
| Jordan |
No |
Means "chamber pot" |
| Josephine |
OK |
Call her "Jo" or "Josie",
but please, not "Fifi" |
| Joyce |
OK |
Another fine Middle Ages holdover |
| Judith |
OK |
Remember, it means "Jewish" |
| Julia/Juliana |
OK |
From different roots, but nickname
them both "Julie" |
| Julie |
No |
As a nickname, yes. As a given name,
no |
| June |
No |
"April" is the only acceptable
month name |
| Karen |
OK |
A 20th century creation, but with
enough famous bearers to allow |
| Katherine |
OK |
We prefer the English "Catherine"
- and no "y"s |
| Kathleen |
OK |
Works best if you're Irish |
| Katrina |
No |
Leave this one to the Euros |
| Kelly |
OK |
Unless your last name is "Kapowski" |
| Kimberly |
No |
Dates from the Boer War - the first
use of concentration camps |
| Kirsten |
No |
"Not Kristen, Kirsten!"
Now imagine hearing that twenty times a day |
| Kristen |
OK |
This and "Kristine" are
OK, but "Kristin" is not |
| Kira |
No |
Means "ma'am" in Greek.
Sucks if she goes to Greece, then |
| Laura |
OK |
"Lauren" and "Laurel"
are slightly confusing |
| Leslie |
OK |
Formerly a boy's name. Not anymore |
| Lillian |
OK |
Just different enough from the flower
to make it work |
| Linda |
OK |
Many important "Linda"s
out there |
| Lindsay |
OK |
Another former boy's name, and that's
"-ay", not "-ey" |
| Lucy |
OK |
Admit it, you want your daughter
to be like the Lucy |
| Madeline |
OK |
Not "Madeleine", that's
a little Parisian girl |
| Madison |
No |
And that goes for all other U.S.
state capitals |
| Margaret |
OK |
Be warned, people will think you're
Catholic |
| Marie |
No |
Especially not as a middle name |
| Martha |
OK |
Apparently, "Pat" is a
nickname here. Hmmm |
| Mary |
OK |
Another Catholic standby |
| Maureen |
No |
"From the halls of Montezuma,
to the shores of Tripoli" |
| Megan |
OK |
80% of all "Megan"s have
a sister named "Molly" |
| Melanie |
No |
Did you really like Gone With
the Wind all that much? |
| Melissa |
OK |
Actually dates back to ancient Greece |
| Michelle |
No |
We went thousands of years without
a feminine of "Michael", and we don't need one now |
| Miranda |
OK |
Invented by Shakespeare. Then again,
he named one of his kids "Hamnet" |
| Misty |
No |
German for "manure" |
| Molly |
OK |
Not actually used much in Ireland.
80% of all "Molly"s have a sister named "Megan" |
| Monica |
No |
Wait a few years |
| Morgan |
No |
This is a man's name. The female
is "Morganna". Come to think of it, skip it altogether |
| Nadia |
OK |
Avoid "Nadine", unless
you're a water nymph |
| Nancy |
OK |
Oddly enough, used to be a nickname
for "Anne" |
| Natalia |
OK |
That's not a typo. "Natalie"
is French, "Natalia" English |
| Nicole |
OK |
Frequently misspelled. (But you can
use "Nicola" in Britain) |
| Olivia |
OK |
But our founder would avoid it, because
he hates Liv Tyler |
| Paige |
No |
Pages are boys, stupid! |
| Pamela |
OK |
Even though we associate "Pam"
with "non-stick cookery" |
| Patricia |
OK |
Best nickname is probably "Trish" |
| Paula |
OK |
Skip the French "Pauline"
or the avian "Polly" |
| Pearl |
No |
"Margaret" means the same
thing, and was not in The Scarlet Letter |
| Phoebe |
No |
And "no" to any other character
name from "Charmed" |
| Rachel |
OK |
Means "sheep". We like
"Sheep In The Big City", so what the heck, go ahead |
| Rebecca |
OK |
Some folks spell this "Rebekah".
Don't do that |
| Renee |
No |
There are no diacriticals in English.
Help keep it that way |
| Roberta |
OK |
The middle name "Jo", as
in "Bobbie Jo", qualified as abuse in most places |
| Robin |
No |
"Run away! Run away!" |
| Rose |
OK |
Not from the flower, it's from Old
German, meaning "renowned" |
| Rosanna |
No |
Like "Roxanne", will always
be associated with 80's music |
| Sabrina |
No |
A Latin place name, see "Found
It On This Here Map" |
| Sally |
No |
This is a nickname for "Sarah" |
| Samantha |
No |
Wait until we've forgotten the nose-wiggling
schtick |
| Sarah |
OK |
Every notable one has the final "H",
and so should you |
| Shannon |
OK |
Like most "Irish" names,
is rare in Ireland |
| Sibyl |
No |
Only if you're sure she'll be a prophet,
and that goes for all variants |
| Sophia |
OK |
And its little sister, "Sonia" |
| Stephanie |
OK |
Don't spell it "Stefanie" |
| Susan |
OK |
It's not as common as it was when
you were a kid |
| Sydney |
No |
"Scream" notwithstanding |
| Tamara |
No |
Imported from Russia. Then the tsar
got murdered. Coincidence? |
| Tanya |
No |
Use the full name, "Tatiana" |
| Theresa |
OK |
The "Teresa" spelling is
reserved for people who are really holy |
| Tiffany |
No |
Like, gag me with a spoon! |
| Ursula |
No |
Blame Disney |
| Valerie |
OK |
Also accept "Valeria" and
"Valentina", the older forms |
| Vanessa |
OK |
Invented by Jonathan Swift. Insert
your own "Modest Proposal" here |
| Veronica |
OK |
Another old Catholic standby |
| Victoria |
OK |
Don't get mad if people call her
"Vicky" |
| Virginia |
OK |
So long as you don't use the confusing
nickname "Ginny" |
| Wendy |
OK |
Not if she's a redhead, that's just
mean |
| Winona |
No |
Unless you're a Native American and
she's a firstborn, because that's what it means |
| Yolanda |
No |
Spanish, and it means "Violet",
too!" |
| Zoe |
No |
Too faddish, though we may allow
the Russian "Zoya", if you're Russian |
