Geezer Names for Girls

Arlo, an unexpectedly popular name for boys these days, is also finding new life as a girls' name. The first name Arlo may be rooted in the surname Arlow or the place name Aherlow, meaning "between two highlands". As a surname, it also has roots in a place name meaning "rocky hill".

Quincy is a Presidential surname name that actually sounds both cute and strong when used for a girl. For the first time ever, Quincy joined the Top 1000 roster for girls in 2023, given to over 250 baby girls that year.

TV personality Jules Asner made this middle-aged male name suddenly seem young and fresh and female, after having been an off-the radar-nickname for Julia and Julie. Author and wife of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver spells her name Jools, and we've also seen Joolz.

Percy is a traditional boys' name that could be cute and unexpected for a girl – perhaps as a short form for Persephone or Persis.

Ollie is used less often as a nickname for the mega-popular Olivia or the stylish Olive than Ellie is for Eleanor or Allie for Allison. That may be because Ollie has a much longer use as a nickname for boys.

Ira for a girl can be either a Russian short form of Irina, meaning "peace", or a gender-switch of the Hebrew male name Ira.

A male Biblical name meaning healer, Asa is also an international gem. In Japanese, it means "(born in the) morning". And in Scandinavia, where it's generally spelled Åsa or Ása and pronounced O-sa, it's a popular diminutive form of Old Norse names beginning with the element áss "god".

This old man nickname feels remarkably fresh when applied to girls. Use it as a short form of Lena, Helena, Magdalena, Lennon or Lennox. The pan-European Leni is identical in sound yet feels a little lighter and fresher, and is a fashionable favorite in Germany.

Merritt has a long and distinguished history as a surname; the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut and the Merritt Building testify to that. But it wasn't until Emmy-winning actress Merritt Wever came along that we gave it much thought as a girls' name. And we aren't alone. It's grown tremendously in popularity since the premiere of Nurse Jackie, in which Wever played a key role. More than 100 baby girls a year are now named Merritt in the U.S.

One of the boys' names newly appropriated for girls -- either on its own, as a pet form of any J name, or as a singular middle name.

The most famous Sinclair was the (male) writer Lewis, but these days the name works at least as well for a girl.

Vintage nickname for Roberta or Barbara, most famously borne by Roberta "Bobbie" in Edith Nesbit's classic The Railway Children.

In the 1940s, Toni began to surpass its progenitor, Antonia, but it peaked in 1960 and has since dropped back below the US Top 1000.

A sleek, smooth, understated name off the grid in the US but among the Top 100 girl names in Germany.

Theo has a girls' name is used for only a handful of babies today. As a short form of Theodora, Theo is used much less frequently than Thea or even Teddy. One notable appearance was as the younger daughter in Sofia Coppola's film On the Rocks in 2020.

Though Tate is used almost exclusively for boys, we can see Tate as a stronger surname alternative to Kate or a clipped form of Tatum.

Mattie, which might be a short form of Martha, Matilda, or even Madeline, ranked among the Top 100 names for girls in the 1880s and in fact, has held a place among the Top 1000 for most of U.S. naming history. It fell off the popularity charts in 2014 and makes a cute, tomboyish, if somewhat slight name option.

Fun, friendly and fresher than Jo or Josie as a nickname for Joanna or Josephine.

Rudy hasn't yet enjoyed the comeback of cousin name Ruby, despite having been chosen by hip couple Sadie Frost and Jude Law, but it still could happen.

Less than ten percent of the babies named Rhys are girls, whereas Reese is given five times more often to girls than to boys, thanks to Ms. Witherspoon. It's a sleek and attractive name, but one that benefits from two accepted spellings that help clarify its gender identity.