New favorites (but not top 10)

  1. Annabel
    • Origin:

      Scottish variation of Amabel
    • Meaning:

      "loving"
    • Description:

      Annabel is a spirited name that embodies quirky British gentility. Appearing in Scotland as early as the twelfth century, where it was a royal name, it also recalls the romantic Edgar Allan Poe poem Annabel Lee, written upon the death of his young wife, Virginia.
  2. Arianna
    • Origin:

      Italian form of Ariadne, Greek
    • Meaning:

      "most holy"
    • Description:

      A smooth, attractive choice, Arianna's on the rise with both single and double 'r's and 'n's. Single 'r' double 'n' Arianna — the second most popular version of the name — is these days associated with Greek-born blog queen Arianna Huffington.
  3. Cecily
    • Origin:

      Feminine variation of Cecil
    • Meaning:

      "blind"
    • Description:

      Cecily is as dainty as a lace handkerchief. Cecily has a wide assortment of namesakes. One Cecily was the mother of King Richard III, whose beauty gained her the title "the Rose of Raby," Cecily Parsley is a Beatrix Potter bunny, Cecily Cardew is a character in The Importance of Being Earnest, and the author of the Gossip Girl books is Cecily von Ziegesar.
  4. Charlotte
    • Origin:

      French, feminine diminutive of Charles
    • Meaning:

      "free man"
    • Description:

      Charlotte, the name of the young Princess of Cambridge, is the latest classic name to join Sophia, Emma, Olivia, and Isabella at the top of the popularity list. It is now among the most popular girl names in many English-speaking and European countries.
  5. Cosette
    • Origin:

      French literary nickname
    • Meaning:

      "little thing"
    • Description:

      Cosette is best known as the heroine of Les Miserables. In the Victor Hugo novel, Cosette was the nickname given to the girl named Euphrasie by her mother. Although Hugo invented the name, some etymologists believe it's a spin on Colette, originally a female short form of Nicolas.
  6. Elaina
    • Origin:

      Variation of Elaine or Elena,"bright, shining light"
    • Meaning:

      "bright, shining light"
    • Description:

      Both Elaine and Elena are on an upward trajectory, which means that Elaina, a combination of the two, is popular too.
  7. Gracelin
    • Hadleigh
      • Origin:

        Spelling variation of Hadley, English
      • Meaning:

        "heathery field"
      • Description:

        Hadley, an old surname-name best known as the name of author Ernest Hemingway's "Paris Wife," only recently broke onto the scene in a big way. While Hadley has considerable appeal, spelling variations such as Hadleigh—and onward to Hadleah, Hadleah, Hadli and so on—only emphasize its trendiness. Hadleigh made its first appearance on the US Top 1000 in 2014.
    • Haven
      • Origin:

        Word name, English
      • Description:

        Haven is a recently invented safe-harbor name that appeals to an increasing number of parents who don't want to voyage quite as far as Heaven.
    • Heidi
      • Origin:

        Diminutive of Adelheid; German
      • Meaning:

        "noble, nobility"
      • Description:

        Heidi became known—and popular—via the 1880 eponymous children's classic by Swiss writer Johanna Spyri and, despite decades of American Heidis of all sizes, shapes, and personalities, the name seems permanently tethered to that spunky little girl on the Alpine mountaintop in the book and Shirley Temple movie.
    • Kensington
      • Liberty
        • Origin:

          Word name
        • Description:

          Less common than other virtue names, Liberty is nonetheless a name with a long American heritage.
      • Mackenna
        • Origin:

          Irish
        • Meaning:

          "son of the handsome one"
        • Description:

          Although the Mc or Mac prefix always means "son of", the first names McKenna and MacKenna are used in the US exclusively for girls, with the McKenna spelling outpacing this one 14 to 1. There are no boys recorded with either spelling of the name.
      • Mackinley
        • Valor
          • Origin:

            Word name
          • Description:

            Honor and bravery are certainly virtues any parent would want to encourage, and this word itself is obscure enough that it manages to sound like a real name.