Girls' Names

This is one surname-name that may swing decidedly to the male side, thanks to highly-visible young actor Alden Ehrenreich.

The smooth, attractive Ariana is on the rise along with the fame of pop princess Ariana Grande. Also famous is twin spelling Arianna, which is associated with Greek-born online presence Arianna Huffington. Both Ariana and Arianna are widely used names and are equally acceptable spellings.

One of the most usable of the pleasant, newly adopted nature/water names (like Lake and Ocean), especially in middle position.

Although the single-named singer is male, this might be a girl's nickname name or a sleek nature name that's perfect in the middle.

Caroline is a perennial classic, one of the elite group of girls' names that's ALWAYS ranked among the Top 1000 and that's been in the Top 100 since 1994. Elegant yet strong, Caroline calls to mind the Kennedy Camelot years and Princess Caroline of Monaco.

Actress Hepburn made the Katharine spelling famous, which seems to be the inspiration for this spin on Catherine.

Delicate ballerina name with grace, charm, and heft courtesy of Jane Austen's Mr.

Delaney has been a popular Irish surname name for a couple of decades, projecting buoyant enthusiasm plus a feminine feel.

A sweet and simple nature name that could also be short for the surname name Odell, the vintage name Della, or the obscure saint's name Endellion.

Greta is an Old World name long tied to the iconic Garbo. Along with other Old Hollywood glamour names, Greta seems to be showing slight signs of a comeback; it was chosen by David Caruso and by Phoebe Cates and Kevin Kline for their daughters.

Helena is one of those classic names that just misses making the US Top 1000 girl names for its entire history, falling off for a single year in 1992. Since then it's been drifting lazily up the charts, and makes a perfect choice if you want a name that both fits in and stands out.

No, we don't consider Jane too plain. In fact, for a venerable and short one-syllable name, we think it packs a surprising amount of punch, as compared to the related Jean and Joan.

A feminine name heard most often in the Hispanic community. Surprisingly, Lorena was on the US Top 1000 list of girls' names for an impressive 130 years, from 1880 until falling off in 2011. We do not predict an imminent return.