Nickname help!
We want to name our baby Penelope but we can’t decide on a nickname? Help!
We get it – naming your baby is hard.
You want to name them something just as special as them, something beautiful, strong, meaningful…
Never fear, we’ve got you covered with our mega-list of over 100 cool uncommon names and unique names with meanings for your super-special newborn!
In this article 📝
- 36 uncommon baby girl names
- 36 uncommon baby boy names
- 30 uncommon unisex names
- What is the most uncommon name?
36 uncommon baby girl names
Are you looking into your beautiful baby girl’s eyes, thinking about her future as a strong, confident woman – unafraid to stand out from the crowd?
We’ve got all sorts of rare names for your little peanut, from cute uncommon baby names to the weird and badass:
- Aislinn: (ash-lin) An elegant and unique Irish girl’s name meaning “dream” or “vision”, perfect for your dream come true.
- Amalia: This different take on the name Emily is Germanic in origin, meaning “work” or “activity” ‒ for high-energy babies!
- Anwen: A graceful Welsh baby name, meaning “very fair”.
- Ariadne: (ah-ree-ad-nee) A delicate Greek name, the goddess of paths and labyrinths, ideal for a baby after a long fertility journey.
- Brielle: A shortened version of the Hebrew name Gabrielle, meaning “heroine of God”.
- Britta: A name with Norwegian and Swedish roots, meaning “exalted one”, one of the most beautiful girls’ names with double letters.
- Calliope: (cal-eye-oh-pee) Ideal if you’re looking for girls’ names that start with Cal, this musical name means “beautiful voiced” in ancient Greek.
- Cassia: (cash-ee-ah) Yes, cassia is a type of cinnamon bark, but the name Cassia is a Polish variant on the name Catherine, meaning “pure”.
- Cressida: Another name steeped in Grecian history and mythology, Cressida means “gold”, and is also one of the moons of Uranus.
- Delta: Ideal for big families, Delta means “fourth born”, but is also the name of a spectacular river in Alaska.
- Danica: A biblical name, meaning “morning star” ‒ perfect for babies born in the early morn!
- Elin: For the spot of sunshine in your life, this Welsh baby girl name means “ray of sun”.
- Erina: If you want to honor your Irish heritage, Erin is perfect ‒ meaning “Ireland”.☘️
- Fionnuala: (Pronounced ‘fin-you-ah-lah’) A legendary Irish name, meaning “white shoulder” ‒ in Irish mythology, Finnguala was turned into a swan ‒ for graceful babies. 🦢
- Gaia: (gah-yah) The earth mother, connected to nature, from the Ancient Greek goddess, Gaia.
- Hester: An Old English and Greek name meaning “star” ‒ a beautiful celestial baby name.
- Iona: (eye-oh-nah) A name with lots of origins, from the Greek for ‘blessed,’ to Gaelic for ‘place with yew trees’ and Old English meaning “violet”, the purple flower.
- Jessamy: A modern take on the French-Persian name Jasmine, after the sweet-smelling, delicate white flower.
- Kenna: A female version of the Irish name Kenneth, meaning “fire-born” or “handsome”.
- Laney: An English version of the French namee Elaine, meaning “bright” or “shining light”, for the baby that lights up your life. 🌟
- Mylah: A melodic name meaning “soldier” in Latin (from the name Miles) and “gracious” in Old Slavic.
- Nia: A Welsh version of the Irish name Niamh, meaning “bright”.
- Oaklee: Perfect for families who love the outdoors, this Old English name means “meadow of oak trees”. A tree name through and through.
- Paityn: A modern spelling of the name Peyton, from the Old English word meaning “warrior’s estate”.
- Quylla: (kwill-ah) A dainty name meaning “feather” in Old English. 🪶
- Raina: For the baby who knows they’re in charge, meaning “queen” in Old French.
- Saffron: After the rare and expensive food spice, the beautiful yellow flower, saffron.
- Serafina: From the Hebrew word seraphim, Serafina is inspired by the red-winged angels who form part of the first hierachy. And if being named for one of the highest angelic beings isn’t enough, the name also means “fiery” or “burning ones”. Bad. Ass.
- Sariah: (sar-eye-ah) A different take on the name Sarah, meaning “princess of the Lord” in Hebrew.
- Talia: (tah-lee-ah) A name with dual meaning ‒ Hebrew for “dew from God” and Ancient Greek for “flourishing”. Can be shortened to Tallie for a cute nickname.
- Ulani: Name meaning “cheerful” in Hawai’ian, for a happy baby!
- Valkyrie: (val-keer-ee) A fierce Scandinavian name with legendary status in Norse mythology ‒ the valkyries were the warriors of Odin.
- Willa: Similar to the more popular name Willow, Willa is a Germanic name meaning “protection” ‒ so your baby knows you’ll always be there.
- Xandra: A Greek name meaning “defender of the people” ‒ a future activist, perhaps?
- Yeline: The ultimate uncommon baby name, meaning “uniqueness” in Spanish!
- Zuri: For the apple of your eye, a Swahili name meaning “beautiful”.
36 uncommon baby boy names
Looking for some interesting names for your baby boy?
The beauty of uncommon names is how far outside the box you can explore to find them.
Which means as you hunt for unique names with meanings, the world is your oyster!
And that includes fictional realms too:
- Ace: Ideal for your first baby boy, meaning “number one” in Latin.
- Alden: A happy baby name, Alden will be a friend to everyone, meaning “old friend” in Old English. 🫱🏻🫲🏽
- Anakin: One for the Star Wars fans! Anakin actually means “warrior” in Sanskrit.
- Brecken: Perfect for the fair baby boy, this name means “freckles” ‒ how cute is that?!
- Chaim: (h-eye-am) A strong Hebrew name meaning “life”.
- Darwin: Similar to Alden, Darwin means “dear friend” in Old English.
- Dashiell: A Scottish-French name meaning “heaven” or “young boy”. A great nickname would be Dash!
- Dax: A powerful, unforgettable name derived from the French word for “leader”.
- Elian: A Hebrew name meaning “God is my family”.
- Fulton: A British name, with roots in Old English, Irish and Scottish, meaning “bird” or “settlement”. Free and yet totally grounded.
- Griffin: A name from Welsh and Latin history, meaning “strong in faith” or the mythical half-eagle, half-lion beast ‒ the protector of the family.
- Hazen: A Germanic name meaning “dark” or “handsome”.
- Idan: Ideal for the baby who’s taken their sweet time to arrive, Idan means “era” or “time” in Hebrew.
- Jasper: A baby is such a precious addition to your family, so Jasper is a fitting name, from the Persian word meaning “treasurer”. Also a beautiful gemstone with deep brown or sparkling blue hues.
- Keirnan: A strong Gaelic name meaning “lord”, for the real head of the family.
- Kian: (k-eye-an, kee-an, or k-eye-n) For the old soul, meaning “ancient” in Gaelic.
- Ledger: For the baby boy who will be quick-witted, meaning “spear people” in Old English.
- Macon: A powerful name with roots in French, meaning ‘marsh-dweller’ or Old German, meaning “strength”.
- Maverick: For the baby boy that makes his own rules, an American name meaning “nonconforming” and “independent”.
- Merrick: The future’s certainly bright for this baby boy! Merrick means “fame” or “power” in Old German.
- Niko: A name with significance in Greece (meaning “victory of the people”) and Japan (meaning “daylight”).
- Orson: A strong boy’s name rooted in Latin history, meaning “bear”. 🐻
- Pace: A modern take on the Latin name Paschalis, meaning “peaceful” ‒ maybe this baby boy will sleep through the night!
- Quinlan: An Irish and Gaelic name meaning “fit” and “strong” ‒ for the baby with an athletic future.
- Reed: Perfect for a strawberry blonde baby boy, this British name means “red-haired”. Watch out for that fiery personality!
- Rocco: Hopefully this baby boy will be a sound sleeper, because this German-Italian name means “rest”.
- Soren: (soar-uhn) A powerful baby boy name meaning “thunder” in Danish ‒ perhaps this is a loud baby who lets you know he’s awake!
- Talon: A name for a baby with a smart future, the meaning of the name Talon is “the claw of a bird of prey” in English.
- Tanner: An Old English name, the meaning of the name Tanner refers to a leather maker.
- Unwin: From the 7th Century Old English name Hunwine, Unwin means “bear cub” and “friend”. For the adorable little bear cub who’ll be everyone’s friend.
- Virgil: A modern version based on the Ancient Roman poet Publius Vergilius Maro, Virgil’s name meaning is “staff bearer”.
- Willis: A baby who will look after the family, the name Willis means “resolute protector” or “will”.
- Xayvion: A modern take on the popular Spanish-Arabic name Xavier, meaning “bright”, with roots in Basque, meaning “new house” ‒ perfect if you’re moving shortly before or after having your baby.
- Yule: Perfect for a Christmastime baby, Yule is a Middle English word meaning “Christmastide”. You couldn’t ask for a better Christmas present! 🎄
- Zayd: An Arabic name meaning ‘abundance’ or ‘growth’, with roots in the traditional name Sayid, meaning “master”.
- Zander: A Greek name derived from the popular boy’s name, Alexander, meaning “defender of the people”.
30 uncommon unisex names
Let’s be real, unusual names don’t follow tradition.
It’s a fine line between uncommon baby girl and uncommon baby boy names, and you may find that when choosing a rare name for your babe any name can be gender neutral.
To jumpstart your quest, we’ve poured over our lists of unique unisex baby names and non-binary names to find you these 30 rare jewels:
- Addy: A modern version of the classic Old English name Adelaide, meaning ‘noble’, and the Hebrew name Adam, meaning “earth” or “man”.
- Amory: An Old English name meaning “brave” or “powerful”, but also reminds us of amor, the French word for “love”. ❤️
- Blakely: A variation on the popular name Blake, Blakely means “dark woodland clearing”.
- Calico: A unisex name referring to a type of pattern and multicolored cat. For the baby with different shades in their hair.
- Cayce: Perfect for the baby who’s wide-eyed and always watching, Cayce is an Irish-Gaelic name meaning “alert” or “watchful”.
- Delaney: One for the baby that’s destined to break all the rules! Delaney is an Irish name meaning “dark challenger”.
- Ember: A fiery gender-neutral name meaning “spark” or “low burning flames” in English. 🔥
- Emery: A German-Latin name meaning “loving”, based on the Norman name Emmerich.
- Fennec: If you’ve seen a Fennec Fox, you’ll know just how adorable this baby name is! It’s similar to the name Finnick (of Hunger Games fame), which is a variation on the name Phoenix, meaning “dark red” or “rebirth”.
- Glade: A glade is an Old English word meaning “meadow”, as well as a German name meaning “shining” or “handsome”.
- Hartley: A powerful name meaning “stag” (hart) and “wood” (leah) in Old English. 🦌
- Indiana: Any fans of Raiders of the Lost Ark? Indiana is a place name meaning “land of the Indians”, and can be shortened to the cute nickname Indie.
- Jennett: A modern spelling of the French name Jeanette, meaning “God is gracious”. Can be pronounced as “Jen-ETTE” or “JEN-ett”, for boys or girls.
- Kynlee: An Irish name, based on the original spelling Kinley, meaning “fair-haired Viking”.
- Lark: Perfect for a baby who’s arrived in the early morning, a lark is a morning bird in English.
- Murphy: A name originally for boys that’s been recently used as a gender-neutral baby name, meaning “sea warrior” in Gaelic. Murph is also a super-cute nickname!
- Nollan: Meaning “champion” in Gaelic, also spelled Nuallan or Nolan.
- Onyx: A mystical jet-black gemstone thought to increase happiness, intuition, and instincts, as well as to grant protection and strength ‒ ideal for a baby with beautiful black hair.
- Presley: An Old English name meaning “priest’s meadow”, and the surname of a certain famous Elvis…
- Quinn: An Irish name meaning “wise” or “counsel”, for the baby who you can tell has a bright future ahead of them.
- Rowan: A unisex baby name referring to the rowan tree, with an Irish history meaning “little redhead”.
- Sorrell: Another name for a red-headed baby, Sorrel is an English name for someone with auburn hair, also meaning “chestnut” in French.
- Tenley: When it comes to a unisex baby name, Tenley is strong and gentle ‒ meaning “town” and “woodland clearing” in Old English.
- Ùisdean: (oosh-jun) A Scottish-Gaelic name meaning “forever” and “stone”, so your baby knows you’ll always be there.
- Vale: An Old English word for a valley by a stream, or “lives by the valley”.
- Wren: A beautifully musical unisex baby name referring to a small brown songbird in England.
- Wynn: A strong name from the Old English name Wine, meaning “friend”. Also refers to a Norse rune, Wynn or Wunjo, which means “joy” and “happiness”.
- Xian: (shi-an or chi-an) A Chinese surname-turned-firstname meaning “spiritual enlightenment” or “long-living”.
- Yann: A modern name derived from the traditional names Ian, Jean, and John, meaning “God is gracious”. Also a Chinese name (Yàn) means “beautiful” or “cliff”.
- Zephyr: An Ancient Greek name meaning “west wind”, for the baby that takes your breath away.
What is the most uncommon name?
By virtue of being yours, your baby is one-of-a-kind, so naturally, you might be struggling to find an unusual baby name that’s as unique as they are.
So what is the most unused name?
It’s hard to find the world’s rarest name since some baby names are so rare they haven’t seen the light of day.
Sure, you could go down the route of creating an entirely new (and somewhat eccentric) name for your baby, like celebrities Elon Musk and Grimes with their baby, X Æ A-Xii Musk, born in May 2020.
Or you could always combine yours and your partner’s first names for the ultimate uncommon baby name!
So Bryan and Linda could be Brylin, or Mohammed and Casey could be Mosey, or even Petra and Diana could be Petriana.
Here’s a handy first name combiner if you wanted to see what your names could be!
Alternatively, you could also pick one of these ‘weird’ baby names:
- Destry: Meaning “horse keeper” or “war horse”.
- Dakarai: This African baby name means “happiness”.
- Jetaime: Inspired by the heartwarming French phrase, this unique name means “I love you”.
- Demelza: Yep, from Poldark fame. This fiery character’s name means “hill fort”.
- Kailani: A stunning example of a combination name. Combining Hawai’ian names Kai and Lani, Kailani means “ocean and sky”.
The most popular baby names are always changing, so why not choose unique, unusual names and uncommon baby names?
You’ll find plenty of inspo in our collection of elvish baby names and there’s some rare wonders in our dragon baby names too.
And hey, if fantasy titles are a little too ‘different’ for you, you could always pick them as unique middle names for your baby-to-be.
There’s plenty of possibilities outside the box!
Just ask the mom’s on Peanut.