How Do I Start?
Naming a baby is a wonderful experience, but it can also be a headache! Many of us go by gut feelings; but if you are looking for a systematic way, here are 5 ideas to help you get started.
Note: our "brother" page on How to Pick My Baby Boy's Name can be found here.
Note: our "brother" page on How to Pick My Baby Boy's Name can be found here.
#1. Based on Popularity
It is probably easier to start brainstorming with the top 100 list: Afterall, these are the favorite names of many parents!Here are the top 20 most popular names for baby girls, born in US in 2007:
- Emily (Latin) - Industrious, striving
- Isabella (Spanish / Latin) - From Elizabeth, meaning "God's promise"
- Emma (German) - Whole and complete
- Ava (Latin) - Bird, or a variation of Eve meaning "breathe"
- Madison (English) - Name of the Mermaid in 1980s hit movie "Splash"
- Sophia (Greek) - Wisdom
- Olivia (Latin) - Olive tree, symbol of fruitfulness, beauty and dignity
- Abigail (Hebrew) - Father's joy
- Hannah (Hebrew) - Favored grace
- Elizabeth (Hebrew) - God is my oath
- Addison (English) - Son of Adam
- Samantha (English / Hebrew) - From Samuel, meaning "God has heard"
- Ashley (English) - Ash meadow
- Alyssa (Greek) - Truth and rational; name of bright yellow flower Alyssum
- Mia (Italian) - Mine; stubborn
- Chloe (Greek) - Blooming
- Natalie (Latin) - Lord's birthday; Christmas
- Sarah (Hebrew) - Princess
- Alexis (Greek) - From Alexander, meaning "Man's defender, warrior"
- Grace (Latin) - Favor, blessing; referring to God's grace
Source: Social Security Administration website (2007 data)
#2. Based on Meaning
Ideas are endless, but you can start thinking along these lines:- Christian / Biblical meanings: Elizabeth (God is my oath), Samantha (God has heard), Gabrielle (heroine of God)
- Revered qualities: Emily (Industrious), Sophia/Sophie (wisdom), Katherine (pure)
- Aspiration: Julia (youthful), Jessica (wealthy), Isabella (beautiful), Jennifer (the fair one), Valeria (strong, healthy)
- "Beautiful" objects: Ava (bird), Ella (shining light), Sarah (princess), Lauren (crown of laurels), Brooke (stream)
- Name of Flower: Lily / Lillian, Jasmine, Alyssa (from Alyssum), Daisy
- Born in certain time of year: Natalie (Christmas), Autumn, Summer
- Unisex names: Alexis, Jordan, Riley
For specific meanings, there is a good search function in Baby Center and most other links listed below. Have fun!
#3. Based on Origin
Do you fancy a French or Greek name, or do you want to have a Celtic, Spanish, or Hindi names based on your ancestry? You may find the following useful:- Hebrew: Abigail, Hannah, Elizabeth >more
- Greek: Alyssa, Chloe, Sophia >more
- English: Madison, Addison, Ashley >more
- Latin: Ava, Olivia, Natalie >more
- French: Nicole, Claire, Michelle >more
- German: Emma, Allison, Aubrey >more
- Spanish: Isabella, Savannah, Jada >more
- Gaelic / Irish: Mackenzie, Megan, Brianna >more
- Welsh: Morgan, Jennifer, Ariana >more
- Persian / Arabic : Jasmine, Layla, Aailyah >more
Fun Fact: Among the top 100 baby girl names:
- 19 are Hebrew
- 18 are Greek
- 18 are English
- 14 are Latin
- 6 are French
- 5 are German
- 5 are Spanish
- 4 are Gaelic / Irish
- 3 are Welsh
- 3 are Persian / Arabic
- 2 are Italian
Some Personalized Baby Gifts Ideas...
Need a thoughtful present for your little daughter or a personalized baby shower gift?
The following are readily available for girls with the top 200 names. Customized requests are welcome: please click here for details.
The following are readily available for girls with the top 200 names. Customized requests are welcome: please click here for details.
Emily Infant Bodysuit
A fun christmas gift idea for your baby's first christmas! Dress up your chubby little snowman with our onesies & shirts.
Price: 15.99 
Chloe Infant/Toddler T-Shirt
Who wouldn't love our little princess? Expect lots of kisses from your daughter, niece & girls pretty in pink with this gift!
Price: 14.99
Ava Bib
Baby gift personalized! Cute cartoon dinosaur with your baby's name. Best personalized baby shower gift on the shelf.
Price: 14.99
Did you know...
Among the top 200 baby names for girls, 38 starts with "A".
#4. Based on How the Name Sounds
This is obviously very subjective, but I would like to share with you some interesting findings:- The A-Girls are way more popular. Among the top 200 baby girl names in the US, 38 starts with a clear-sounding "A". Also, the most popular names, Emily and Emma, have their first syllables sounding like "A".
- M is the next. Besides "A", there are 25 names that starts with "M".
- S,J,K aren't bad. Then, there are 17 names starting with "S", also 17 for "J" and "16" for K.
Syllables
Names with 2 syllables are the favorites. Among the top 100 names:
- 45 have 2 syllables
- 40 have 3 syllables
- 11 have 4 syllables
- 4 have 1 syllable
#5. Based on Celebrities
You may not realize, but many names are popularized by actresses, celebrity babies and characters in movies. Examples:- Madison: The mermaid in 1980s movie "Splash". The name was ranked around 500s before 1980 and is now #5.
- Nevaeh: Daughter of Singer Sonny Sandoval of the rock group P.O.D., born in 2000. Name was virtually non-existent but is now ranked #31.
- Ava: Actress Ava Gardner. Name was ranked around 800s before 1960s and is now #4.
- Ashley: Ashley Wilkes (character in "Gone with the Wind") and Singer Ashley Olsen. Name was ranked around 700s before 1960s and is now #13.
- Mia: Actress Mia Farrow. Name was ranked around 500s before 1940s and is now #15.
- Kayla: Character in 1960s TV drama "Days of our lives". Name was ranked around 900s before 1970s and is now #26.
- Brooke: Actress Brooke Shields. Name was ranked around 700s before 1970s and is now #45.
- Angelina: Actress Angelina Jolie. Name was ranked around 300s before mid-1990s and is now #58.
- Aaliyah: Late singer Aaliyah Haughton. Name was not ranked (i.e. >1000) before 1993 but is now #84.
Some Celebrity Ideas for You
Online Baby Name Database: My Pick
There are lots of databases out there, each with pros and cons. Here is my own opinion on each of them. Feel free to share what you think as well!
- Behindthename
- A user-friendly database with interesting tools such as Name Day and Namesake searches.
- Thinkbabynames
- A database that gives a lot of statistics, with some of the names' ranking going back to 100 years. The interlinks are also useful for looking up alternative spellings and feminine/masculine varations. However, information relatively not up-to-date, e.g. the name "Nevaeh" is not included.
- Babycenter's Baby Namer
- Another database that is useful if you are looking for meanings and alternative spelling. In general Babycenter is an excellent website.
- BabyNamesWorld
- Fewer functions, but the meaning and origin is laid out nicely without a lot of clickthroughs.
- Babynameguide
- A general baby name information center. Great for research but I find it slightly overwhelming.
- Babynames
- I believe this is the first online database for baby names (since 1996!). It used to have a clean simple layout but now with additional functions I find it inconvenient to navigate.
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