Names I Love But Can't Use

Everything ella, from Ella to Bella to Arabella, is red hot right now. Bella is one of the most, well, beautiful girl names starting with B. It carried a hint of a nice Old World grandmotherly veneer, until it became attached to Twilight's Bella Swan.

A sweet-meaning and sounding name dating back to the Roman Empire, and later found in the antebellum South, Dulcie has in the modern era been heard most often in Australia.

Esmé comes from the past participle of the Old French verb esmer, meaing "to esteem" or "to love." It can also be considered a derivative of the Spanish name Esmeralda, which means "emerald".

Iconoclasts though we may be, we like Fred, we like Frank, and we like George, which was among the Top 10 from 1830 to 1950, when the number of little Georges started to decline. Solid, strong, royal and saintly, yet friendly and unpretentious, we think that George is in prime position for a comeback, especially since it was chosen by Britain's royal couple.

Harry is the medieval English form of Henry, which derived from the Germanic name Heimrich, meaning "estate ruler." Harry was the nickname of all eight King Henrys; it is also a diminutive of Harold and Harrison.

Henry is back. The classic Henry climbed back onto the Top 10 in the US in 2021 for the first time in over a century, and now stands at Number 7.

Jackson is one of those names that's much more popular than you think, coming in near the top of our annual Playground Analysis, which ranks names by grouping all their spellings together. There were nearly 17,000 baby boys named Jackson -- along Jaxon, Jaxson, Jaxxon, Jaxen, Jaxyn, Jaxsen, and Jaxsyn -- which counted together makes it the Number 3 boys' name.

Lily is the most popular of the popular delicate century-old flower names now making a return, thanks to its many irresistible attributes: a cool elegance and a lovely sound, a symbol of purity and innocence, and a role in Christian imagery.

Lottie is a nostalgic great-grandma name that conjures up lockets and lace, and -- like Nellie, Josie, Hattie, Tillie, and Milly -- has considerable vintage charm. A Top 100 name at the end of the nineteenth century, Lottie fell off the popularity list around 1960, but is now climbing back both as a nickname for popular Charlotte, as well as on its' own. Lottie re-entered the US charts for the first time since the 50s in 2022, and is likely going to keep climbing. It's already an amazing Number 85 in England and Wales.

Retro short form of Marina, now dated to the era of the Hitchcock movie that made it famous. In the UK, it's one of the hottest vintage names of the moment, perhaps inspired by British singer Lily Allen, who gave it to her second daughter in 2013. It's also a character name on the hit TV show Girls.

The name of our first First Lady still has something of a prim and proper image, academic and efficient. That quiet, traditional, and tasteful gestalt is exactly what makes Martha appealing to some parents today.

Mia is an appealingly unfussy multicultural name that has enjoyed a meteoric rise up the charts and is now firmly among the ten top girl names. Mia has surpassed its mother name Maria as the Number 1 girls' name starting with M.

Roman is an ancient name trending in a major way. A surprise hit name of recent years, Roman now ranks in the Top 100 not only in the US but throughout the English-speaking world, and is rising in other European countries as well.

Scarlett Johansson is doing more for this sparky southern name than Scarlett O'Hara ever did. Since the turn of the 21st century, Scarlett has gone from an obscure literary name to one of the most popular girls' names starting with S, right after longtime favorites Sophia and Sofia.

Sebastian is an ancient martyr's name turned literary, and Little Mermaid hero—think Sebastian the Crab—that's more popular than ever, as a classic-yet-unconventional compatriot for fellow British favorites T Theodore and Oliver.

The long-neglected name of Adam and Eve's third son after Cain and Abel, Seth is appreciated for its gentle, understated presence -- and strong middle-name potential. It reached a high of Number 63 in the year 2000.

Although Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire personified brute force, most Stanleys have been portrayed as meek milquetoasts. It could be a Sydney-like girls' choice.-Bette Davis once played a character named Stanley, and it was the name of President Obama's mother (named for her father)--or possibly could be revived down the line a la Walter and Arthur.

Tansy is a flower name rarer than Rose, livelier than Lily and a lot less teasable than Pansy.