200+ Geographical Baby Names From Around the World

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This list gathers more than 200 names inspired by real places — cities, countries, rivers, mountains, and more — for parents who want a name with an actual location behind it. Some point to where a story started: a birthplace, a family homeland, a spot that mattered along the way to becoming parents. Others are simply beautiful words that happen to belong to somewhere on a map. Either way, every name here has an address you could find on a globe.

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Popularity below is calculated from Social Security Administration data through 2024, the most recent year on record.

Here’s what’s in store –

From Sea to Shining Sea: American Place Names

Across the Atlantic: European Place Names

Africa and the Middle East: Names With Ancient Roots

Asia and the Pacific: Names From the Far East

Latin America and the Caribbean: Warm-Toned Names

The Ancient World: Classical and Mythological Place Names

Mountains, Rivers, and Wild Landscapes

Hidden Gems: Rare Geographical Baby Names

Geographical names are some of the oldest in recorded history. Ancient Romans named children after provinces. Polynesian families gave children the names of islands. Yoruba parents in West Africa named babies after the place of their birth as a way of anchoring them to the earth. What feels like a modern Pinterest trend is actually one of humanity’s oldest naming traditions — and it’s a good one.

What makes place names work as baby names isn’t just novelty. Most of them have rich etymological roots in Latin, Greek, Arabic, Sanskrit, or indigenous languages — which means they carry real meanings, not invented ones. Savannah comes from a Taíno word for “treeless plain.” Milan traces back to Slavic roots meaning “gracious.” Lydia was an ancient kingdom in Anatolia, and the name carried with it centuries of silk-road mystique long before it became a Victorian parlor favorite.

This list covers more than 200 real geographical baby names drawn from every corner of the planet — organized by region, with accurate meanings, origins, and a note on what makes each one sing. Whether you’re looking for something familiar with a fresh angle or a name so rare it stops people mid-sentence, there’s something here from nearly every meridian.

From Sea to Shining Sea: American Place Names

American geography is richer in names than most parents realize. These aren’t just state capitals and tourist spots — they’re words with deep histories, many borrowed from Indigenous languages, Spanish, French, and Dutch. Used as given names, they land somewhere between rooted and adventurous.

Austin

Origin: Old French (Anglo-Norman, from Latin Augustinus)
Pronunciation: AW-stin · ˈɔːstɪn
Meaning: a worn-down form of Augustine, ultimately tracing to Augustus (‘majestic, venerable’)
Popularity: #107 and falling (#101 → #107, 2024)

Friendly and slightly southern; has been a given name since the Middle Ages but the Texas capital gave it its current cool.

Brooklyn

Origin: Dutch (place name)
Pronunciation: BROOK-lin · ˈbrʊklɪn
Meaning: marshland (from Dutch broek), via the place name Breukelen
Popularity: #108 and falling (#84 → #108, 2024)

The NYC borough name that crossed fully into given-name territory in the 2000s and has stayed there.

Savannah

Origin: Spanish (ultimately from Taino)
Pronunciation: suh-VAN-ah · səˈvænə
Meaning: a grassy, largely treeless plain; also linked to the city of Savannah, Georgia
Popularity: #107 and falling (#92 → #107, 2024)

Spanish moss, warm breezes, and riverfront charm — this name feels like a long summer afternoon.

Dallas

Origin: Scottish (place name and surname)
Pronunciation: DAL-us · ˈdæləs
Meaning: roughly “dwelling in the valley” (dale + house/abode)
Popularity: #243 and rising (#252 → #243, 2024)

More surname than city name at its root; has a quiet, steady confidence.

Denver

Origin: Old English (place name/surname)
Pronunciation: DEN-ver · ˈdɛnvər
Meaning: uncertain: either ‘the Danes’ crossing’ or ‘ridge by the valley’ (two competing Old English derivations); not verifiably ‘green valley’
Popularity: #486 and rising (#510 → #486, 2024)

Western and grounded without being over-the-top outdoorsy.

Georgia

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: JOR-juh · ˈdʒɔːrdʒə
Meaning: farmer, earth-worker
Popularity: #110 and rising (#128 → #110, 2024)

A state name that functions beautifully as a feminine given name; Ray Charles made it immortal.

Indiana

Origin: English (U.S. place name)
Pronunciation: in-dee-AN-ah · ˌɪndiˈænə
Meaning: named for the historic Indiana Territory, itself named for its Native American population
Popularity: #2,154 and falling (#2,034 → #2,154, 2024)

Indy for short — adventurous, literary, and playful.

Virginia

Origin: Latin
Pronunciation: vur-JIN-yah · vərˈdʒɪnjə
Meaning: popularly glossed ‘maiden/virgin’ (via Latin virgo), though the name itself derives from the Roman family name Verginius/Virginius, whose own root is uncertain
Popularity: #510 and rising (#560 → #510, 2024)

Montana

Origin: Spanish (place name)
Pronunciation: mahn-TAN-uh · mɒnˈtænə
Meaning: mountain / mountainous land (from Spanish montaña)
Popularity: #1,058 and rising (#1,309 → #1,058, 2024)

Rare enough to feel deliberate; evokes big sky and open land.

Sierra

Origin: Spanish
Pronunciation: see-AIR-ah · siˈɛrə
Meaning: Spanish word for a jagged mountain range (literally ‘saw’)
Popularity: #596 and falling (#568 → #596, 2024)

Clean, strong, and nature-forward; inspired by the Sierra Nevada.

Cheyenne

Origin: Siouan (Dakota/Lakota) — ethnonym
Pronunciation: shy-AN · ʃaɪˈæn
Meaning: a Sioux exonym for the Cheyenne people, often explained as ‘people who speak a different/unintelligible language’
Popularity: #867 and falling (#788 → #867, 2024)

Charlotte

Origin: French
Pronunciation: SHAR-lut · ˈʃɑːrlət
Meaning: feminine diminutive of Charles, sharing its root meaning ‘free man’ (popularly softened to ‘free woman’)
Popularity: #4 and falling (#3 → #4, 2024)

Old-fashioned in the best possible way; one of the most enduring names across centuries.

Phoenix

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: FEE-niks · ˈfiːnɪks
Meaning: the mythical firebird symbolizing rebirth and renewal
Popularity: #275 and falling (#269 → #275, 2024)

The Arizona capital shares its name with the mythological bird; carries layers of meaning about renewal.

Memphis

Origin: Egyptian (via Greek and Latin)
Pronunciation: MEM-fiss · ˈmɛmfɪs
Meaning: enduring and beautiful
Popularity: #588 and falling (#489 → #588, 2024)

Soulful, musical, impossible to separate from the blues.

Juneau

Origin: French (surname, from ‘jeune’)
Pronunciation: JOO-noh · ˈdʒuːnoʊ
Meaning: young (from French jeune); the Alaskan capital was named after gold prospector Joe Juneau, who carried this surname
Popularity: #6,614 and rising (#7,971 → #6,614, 2024)

Uncommon and quietly distinctive; named for gold prospector Joe Juneau.

Augusta

Origin: Latin
Pronunciation: aw-GUS-tuh · ɔːˈɡʌstə
Meaning: venerable, majestic (feminine form of Augustus)
Popularity: #3,076 and rising (#3,917 → #3,076, 2024)

The Georgia and Maine city name is regal and significantly underused.

Laramie

Origin: American place name (from a French-Canadian surname)
Pronunciation: LAIR-uh-mee · ˈlær.ə.mi
Meaning: French “thicket/branches”
Popularity: #1,089 and rising (#1,143 → #1,089, 2024)

Rootsy and Western with an unexpected softness to the sound.

Raleigh

Origin: Old English (place name/surname)
Pronunciation: RAW-lee · ˈrɔːli
Meaning: roe deer clearing
Popularity: #1,916 and falling (#1,652 → #1,916, 2024)

Preppy but grounded; named for Sir Walter Raleigh.

Columbia

Origin: Latin (from the explorer’s Latinized name, Columbus)
Pronunciation: kuh-LUM-bee-uh · kəˈlʌmbiə
Meaning: ‘[land] of Columbus’ — formed from the explorer’s Latinized name plus a place-name suffix
Popularity: #12,402 and falling (#10,302 → #12,402, 2024)

Serene and strong; the District of Columbia gives it gravitas.

Aspen

Origin: English (modern coinage, nature name)
Pronunciation: AS-pun · ˈæspən
Meaning: named for the aspen (quaking) tree
Popularity: #265 and falling (#215 → #265, 2024)

Crisp and nature-forward; crosses over from tree name to mountain town name effortlessly.

Helena

Origin: Greek (Latinized form of Helen)
Pronunciation: HEL-uh-nah · ˈhɛlənə
Meaning: Greek “torch/bright”
Popularity: #414 and rising (#457 → #414, 2024)

Shining and classic; more distinctive than Ellen or Helen.

Catalina

Origin: Spanish (form of Catherine/Katherine)
Pronunciation: kat-uh-LEE-nuh · ˌkætəˈliːnə
Meaning: Greek “pure”
Popularity: #128 and rising (#147 → #128, 2024)

Sun-drenched and lovely; feels more southern California than the more expected Katherine.

Salem

Origin: Hebrew (feminine use) and Arabic (masculine use, as Salim)
Pronunciation: SAY-lum · ˈseɪləm
Meaning: peace, wholeness (from the Hebrew place name for ancient Jerusalem); the Arabic-derived masculine use means ‘safe, unharmed’
Popularity: #430 and falling (#417 → #430, 2024)

Layered history — Puritan New England and ancient Holy Land — gives this name depth.

Sedona

Origin: American (place name: Sedona, Arizona)
Pronunciation: seh-DOH-nuh · sɪˈdoʊnə
Meaning: possibly invented for a pioneer woman but tied deeply to Arizona
Popularity: #1,720 and rising (#1,745 → #1,720, 2024)

The red-rock Arizona city; unusual and striking, with a naturally flowing sound.

Sonoma

Origin: Coast Miwok / Suisun (Indigenous Californian)
Pronunciation: soh-NOH-mah · səˈnoʊmə
Meaning: possibly Coast Miwok “valley of the moon”
Popularity: #8,862 and falling (#8,422 → #8,862, 2024)

California wine country name; warm, rounded, and unexpectedly beautiful.

Across the Atlantic: European Place Names

Europe’s cities, coastlines, and regions have been donating syllables to naming traditions for millennia. Many of these are already established given names — they just happen to also be places. Others feel genuinely rare on a birth certificate despite being household words on a map.

Adria

Origin: Latin/Italian (place name, feminine form of Adrian)
Pronunciation: AY-dree-ah · ˈeɪdriə
Meaning: feminine form of Adrian, from the Italian city/region of Adria (source of ‘Adriatic’); the deeper pre-Roman root of that place-name is disputed
Popularity: #3,041 and falling (#2,645 → #3,041, 2024)

The river town that gave the Adriatic Sea its name; shorter and stronger than Adriana.

Alba

Origin: Latin (via Spanish/Italian/Catalan)
Pronunciation: AL-buh · ˈælbə
Meaning: dawn/sunrise, from a Latin root meaning ‘white’
Popularity: #1,171 and rising (#1,238 → #1,171, 2024)

Arden

Origin: Celtic (Brythonic place name)
Pronunciation: AR-dun · ˈɑːrdən
Meaning: high
Popularity: #943 and rising (#1,019 → #943, 2024)

Shakespeare set As You Like It in the Forest of Arden; wooded and literary.

Avon

Origin: Brittonic Celtic (place name)
Pronunciation: AY-von · ˈeɪvən
Meaning: river
Popularity: #5,245 and rising (#5,266 → #5,245, 2024)

The river that runs through Shakespeare’s birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon; lyrical and old.

Brittany

Origin: French (place name, from Latin Britannia)
Pronunciation: BRIT-uh-nee · ˈbrɪtəni
Meaning: from Brittany, France
Popularity: #791 and rising (#856 → #791, 2024)

The rugged northwestern French peninsula; in France the name feels timeless even if it had a 90s moment in the US.

Camden

Origin: English (Old English place name)
Pronunciation: KAM-dun · ˈkæmdən
Meaning: enclosed valley (Old English camp “enclosure” + denu “valley”)
Popularity: #193 and falling (#180 → #193, 2024)

The London market district turned into a fresh given name; spirited and urban.

Capri

Origin: Italian (place name)
Pronunciation: KAH-pree · ˈkɑːpri
Meaning: named after the island of Capri
Popularity: #572 and falling (#570 → #572, 2024)

The sun-drenched island off the Amalfi Coast; short, vivid, impossible to say without picturing clear blue water.

Chelsea

Origin: English (Old English place name)
Pronunciation: CHEL-see · ˈtʃɛlsi
Meaning: a chalk landing place / wharf
Popularity: #784 and falling (#712 → #784, 2024)

A riverfront London neighborhood that became a genuinely enduring English given name.

Florence

Origin: Latin
Pronunciation: FLOR-ens · ˈflɔːrəns
Meaning: flourishing, blooming (from florens, related to flos ‘flower’)
Popularity: #435 and rising (#522 → #435, 2024)

Dante’s birthplace and home of Botticelli; carries artistic and literary gravity quietly.

Geneva

Origin: Place name (Geneva, Switzerland)
Pronunciation: jeh-NEE-vah · dʒəˈniːvə
Meaning: Celtic/German “estuary/mouth of the river”
Popularity: #1,603 and falling (#1,537 → #1,603, 2024)

Clean, cosmopolitan, and significantly underused as a given name.

Holland

Origin: Dutch (place name)
Pronunciation: HAH-lund · ˈhɑːlənd
Meaning: wooded land
Popularity: #602 and falling (#571 → #602, 2024)

The surname-as-given-name route via the Netherlands; works for boys and girls alike.

Isla

Origin: Scottish (place name)
Pronunciation: EYE-lah · ˈaɪlə
Meaning: from the Scottish place name Islay/River Isla; the place name’s own root is unknown
Popularity: #35 and falling (#33 → #35, 2024)

This is a popular simplification — Isla actually derives from the Scottish place name Islay/River Isla, whose own root is unknown, not from the Spanish or English word for ‘island’.

Kent

Origin: Brythonic Celtic (English place name/surname)
Pronunciation: KENT · kɛnt
Meaning: border, rim, or edge
Popularity: #1,631 and rising (#1,674 → #1,631, 2024)

A brisk, one-syllable English county name that works beautifully as a given name.

Lyon

Origin: Gaulish/Latin (place name)
Pronunciation: LY-uhn · ˈlaɪən
Meaning: fort of Lugus (a Gaulish god)
Popularity: #1,897 and rising (#2,523 → #1,897, 2024)

France’s gastronomic capital; single-syllable and strong with a French softness.

Milan

Origin: Slavic
Pronunciation: mih-LAHN · mɪˈlɑːn
Meaning: dear, kind, gracious
Popularity: #231 and falling (#230 → #231, 2024)

Italy’s fashion capital lends instant cosmopolitan flair; the city name ultimately traces to Latin “Mediolanum.”

Odessa

Origin: Greek place name (of uncertain/pre-Greek origin)
Pronunciation: oh-DESS-ah · oʊˈdɛsə
Meaning: Greek “journey”
Popularity: #1,583 and rising (#1,846 → #1,583, 2024)

The Ukrainian Black Sea port; shares its root with Odyssey and carries that wandering, epic quality.

Paris

Origin: Greek / French (dual origin)
Pronunciation: PAIR-iss · ˈpærɪs
Meaning: Either from the Trojan prince of Greek mythology, or from the city of Paris (ultimately the Gallic Parisii tribe name)
Popularity: #484 and rising (#493 → #484, 2024)

The French capital — bold to use as a given name, but it was a man’s name in Greek mythology long before it was a city.

Rhodes

Origin: English/Greek (dual origin)
Pronunciation: ROHDZ · ˈroʊdz
Meaning: as an English surname, ‘one who lived near a woodland clearing’; also the Greek island Rhodes, whose own name origin is uncertain
Popularity: #613 and rising (#707 → #613, 2024)

The sun-drenched Dodecanese island; warm-toned and mythologically rich.

Roma

Origin: Latin (from Rome/Roman) or Sanskrit (name of the goddess Lakshmi in India)
Pronunciation: ROH-muh · ˈroʊmə
Meaning: from the city of Rome (itself of disputed origin); also a name of the goddess Lakshmi in India
Popularity: #1,686 and rising (#1,694 → #1,686, 2024)

The Italian name for Rome; the city’s own name in its own language, simple and powerful.

Seville

Origin: Phoenician (via Latin Hispalis and Arabic Ishbiliya, place name)
Pronunciation: seh-VIL · səˈvɪl
Meaning: a plain or valley
Popularity: #17,738 as of 2018 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Andalusia’s most romantic city; flamenco, orange blossoms, and a name that glides.

Shannon

Origin: Irish (from the River Shannon / Sionainn, also a surname)
Pronunciation: SHAN-un · ˈʃænən
Meaning: named after the goddess Sinann, linked in Irish legend to a well of wisdom (not a literal translation of the word)
Popularity: #1,873 and rising (#2,047 → #1,873, 2024)

The longest river in Ireland; used as a given name since at least the 1940s and never feels dated.

Sienna

Origin: English (from the pigment/color name ‘sienna’, associated with Siena, Italy)
Pronunciation: see-EN-ah · siˈɛnə
Meaning: a reddish-brown color
Popularity: #139 and rising (#140 → #139, 2024)

The Tuscan city lent its name to the warm pigment; lovely as a given name and a color.

Skye

Origin: Scottish (from the Isle of Skye, a place name of disputed/unresolved origin) or English (playful respelling of ‘sky’)
Pronunciation: SKY · ˈskaɪ
Meaning: Norse “cloud/island”
Popularity: #480 and falling (#447 → #480, 2024)

The Isle of Skye is one of the most dramatic landscapes in Britain; short and atmospheric.

Valencia

Origin: Latin (from Valentia)
Pronunciation: vuh-LEN-see-uh · vəˈlɛnsiə
Meaning: strength, vigor
Popularity: #1,271 and rising (#1,275 → #1,271, 2024)

Vibrant Mediterranean city name; slightly more distinctive than Valeria while sharing the same energy.

Venice

Origin: Latin (from the Veneti people)
Pronunciation: VEN-iss · ˈvɛnɪs
Meaning: named for the ancient Veneti people
Popularity: #3,945 and rising (#4,181 → #3,945, 2024)

Italy’s floating city; romantic and unmistakable — surprisingly rare as an actual given name.

Verona

Origin: Italian (place name, pre-Roman origin, disputed)
Pronunciation: vuh-ROH-nuh · vəˈroʊnə
Meaning: Latin “very honorable”
Popularity: #6,354 and falling (#6,144 → #6,354, 2024)

Shakespeare set Romeo and Juliet here; beautiful and literary without being heavy-handed.

Vienna

Origin: place name (city of Vienna, Austria); ultimate root uncertain, possibly Celtic
Pronunciation: vee-EN-ah · viˈɛnə
Meaning: Celtic “white settlement”
Popularity: #531 and rising (#690 → #531, 2024)

Austria’s imperial capital; classical music, coffee houses, and a quietly regal sound.

Lorraine

Origin: French (place name)
Pronunciation: lor-AYN · lɒˈreɪn
Meaning: from Lorraine, France (ultimately ‘famous army’ via Lothair)
Popularity: #1,417 and falling (#1,358 → #1,417, 2024)

Lourdes

Origin: Spanish (from the French place name)
Pronunciation: LOOR-dez · ˈlʊrdɛz
Meaning: Basque “rocky slope”
Popularity: #2,754 and falling (#2,455 → #2,754, 2024)

The French Pyrenean pilgrimage town; devotional and distinctive, with a strong, grounded sound.

Provence

Origin: Latin (via French, place name)
Pronunciation: proh-VAHNSS · prəˈvɑːns
Meaning: ‘province,’ since the region was the Romans’ first province established outside Italy
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The lavender-scented southeastern French region; luminous and romantic as a given name.

Africa and the Middle East: Names With Ancient Roots

This is where geographical naming traditions run deepest. The names here come from some of the oldest civilizations on earth — and many of them have meanings that go far beyond the place itself, reaching into ancient languages that have been alive for millennia.

Amara

Origin: modern coinage (popularized by fantasy fiction)
Pronunciation: ah-MAR-ah · əˈmɑːrə
Meaning: Amharic “grace/eternal”
Popularity: #121 and rising (#123 → #121, 2024)

Also the name of a major Ethiopian region and ethnic group; increasingly popular internationally while still feeling rare.

Cairo

Origin: Arabic (place name, the city of Cairo, Egypt)
Pronunciation: KY-roh · ˈkaɪroʊ
Meaning: ‘the victorious’ or ‘the conqueror,’ from Arabic al-Qāhira (Cairo)
Popularity: #355 and falling (#331 → #355, 2024)

Egypt’s vast, layered capital; bold and uncommon as a given name with a meaning that carries weight.

Cleo

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: KLEE-oh · ˈkliːoʊ
Meaning: glory, fame
Popularity: #603 and rising (#610 → #603, 2024)

Alexandria’s most famous daughter; vivid, short, and ancient without feeling heavy.

Eden

Origin: Hebrew (boys’ use sometimes from an unrelated English surname)
Pronunciation: EE-den · ˈiːdən
Meaning: traditionally glossed ‘delight,’ referencing the biblical Garden of Eden; some scholars trace the underlying word to a Sumerian term for ‘steppe/plain’ instead
Popularity: #72 and rising (#77 → #72, 2024)

The Garden of Eden sits in the ancient Mesopotamian world; spiritual, gentle, and widely loved.

Farah

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: FAIR-ah · ˈfɛrə
Meaning: joy; happiness
Popularity: #1,363 and falling (#1,310 → #1,363, 2024)

Also the name of a region in Afghanistan; light and flowing with a clear, positive meaning.

Fatima

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: FAH-tih-muh · ˈfɑːtɪmə
Meaning: one who abstains or weans (from the root f-t-m)
Popularity: #316 and rising (#344 → #316, 2024)

The Portuguese pilgrimage town Fátima was named after a Moorish girl; Fatima Malik makes it modern, Fatima Zahra makes it timeless.

Jordan

Origin: Hebrew
Pronunciation: JOR-dan · ˈdʒɔːrdən
Meaning: one who descends, or flows down (from the Jordan River’s name)
Popularity: #104 and falling (#96 → #104, 2024)

The river that runs between Jordan and Israel; the most widely used place name on this entire list, and still genuinely beautiful.

Kenya

Origin: Bantu (Kikuyu or Kamba, Kenya) — from the name of Mount Kenya
Pronunciation: KEN-yuh · ˈkɛnjə
Meaning: possibly ‘white mountain’ or simply ‘mountain’ (competing, unresolved theories)
Popularity: #1,662 and falling (#1,571 → #1,662, 2024)

Named for the snow-capped equatorial peak; strong, bright, and immediately evocative.

Layla

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: LAY-lah · ˈleɪlə
Meaning: night (from Arabic ‘layl’)
Popularity: #37 and falling (#30 → #37, 2024)

Beloved across the Arab world and beyond; Layla is also the name of several places across the Arabian Peninsula, and the meaning is hauntingly beautiful.

Malika

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: mah-LEE-kah · mæˈliːkə
Meaning: queen (feminine form of Malik, ‘king’)
Popularity: #2,834 and falling (#2,166 → #2,834, 2024)

Common in Morocco, Algeria, and West Africa; regal, melodic, and meaningful.

Nairobi

Origin: Maasai
Pronunciation: nye-ROH-bee · naɪˈroʊbi
Meaning: cool water
Popularity: #1,535 and falling (#1,319 → #1,535, 2024)

Kenya’s capital takes its name from a Maasai watering hole; striking and rare on a birth certificate anywhere outside East Africa.

Nile

Origin: Greek (via Egyptian/Semitic, uncertain)
Pronunciation: NYL · naɪl
Meaning: Refers to the Nile River, via Greek ‘Neilos’; the word’s ultimate root is genuinely uncertain, though a link to a Semitic term for ‘river valley’ is sometimes proposed.
Popularity: #1,943 and falling (#1,770 → #1,943, 2024)

The world’s longest river; simple, powerful, and cross-cultural in a way that works for any family.

Nubia

Origin: Ancient Egyptian (place name, disputed)
Pronunciation: NOO-bee-uh · ˈnuːbiə
Meaning: possibly from an ancient Egyptian word for ‘gold,’ referencing the region’s gold mines, though the origin is debated
Popularity: #4,256 and falling (#2,811 → #4,256, 2024)

The ancient kingdom that stretched between modern Egypt and Sudan; evocative and rare.

Petra

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: PEH-trah · ˈpɛtrə
Meaning: rock, stone (feminine form of Peter)
Popularity: #1,486 and falling (#1,473 → #1,486, 2024)

The rose-red carved city in Jordan; elegant, strong, and popular in Scandinavia but still rare in English-speaking countries.

Sahara

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: suh-HAH-ruh · səˈhɑːrə
Meaning: desert
Popularity: #1,640 and rising (#1,685 → #1,640, 2024)

The world’s largest hot desert; striking and bold — one of those names that requires exactly zero explaining about where it came from.

Sana

Origin: Arabic
Pronunciation: SAH-nuh · ˈsɑːnə
Meaning: radiance, brilliance
Popularity: #1,449 and falling (#1,322 → #1,449, 2024)

Sana’a is the ancient capital of Yemen; as a given name, Sana feels clean and radiant.

Sheba

Origin: Hebrew
Pronunciation: SHEE-buh · ˈʃiː.bə
Meaning: possibly tied to the Hebrew root for ‘seven’ or ‘oath,’ though many scholars think the name actually comes from Saba, an ancient South Arabian kingdom
Popularity: #13,257 as of 2023 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

This plays on a real Hebrew word pattern, but many scholars think ‘Sheba’ actually comes from Saba, an ancient South Arabian kingdom, with no confirmed independent meaning.

Sinai

Origin: Hebrew (place name)
Pronunciation: SY-ny · ˈsaɪnaɪ
Meaning: Hebrew “thorn bush”
Popularity: #2,422 and falling (#1,933 → #2,422, 2024)

The sacred Sinai Peninsula; sacred across three religions and quietly striking as a name.

Tana

Origin: uncertain; place name (Lake Tana in Ethiopia / rivers in Kenya and Norway, each with a different root)
Pronunciation: TAH-nuh · ˈtɑːnə
Meaning: Ethiopian/Swahili “river/lake”
Popularity: #8,347 and rising (#12,062 → #8,347, 2024)

Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile; River Tana runs through Kenya. Short, clean, and melodic.

Zanzibar

Origin: Persian/Arabic
Pronunciation: ZAN-zih-bar · ˈzænzɪbɑːr
Meaning: coast of the Zanj (a historical term for East African Black peoples)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Tanzanian archipelago off the East African coast; exotic and rolling, with a rhythm that’s hard to forget.

Luxor

Origin: Arabic (place name)
Pronunciation: LUK-sor · ˈlʌksɔːr
Meaning: the palaces
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Egypt’s open-air museum city on the Nile; rare, strong, and rooted in ancient grandeur.

Accra

Origin: Akan (Ghanaian place name)
Pronunciation: uh-KRAH · əˈkrɑː
Meaning: ants (referring to the anthills once common around the city)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Ghana’s capital, named after the black ants that once covered the area; short, sharp, and rare.

Cassia

Origin: Latin (from Greek ‘kasia’)
Pronunciation: KAS-ee-uh · ˈkæsiə
Meaning: cinnamon (the spice/tree)
Popularity: #2,234 and rising (#2,353 → #2,234, 2024)

The spice traded from ancient Middle Eastern routes; fragrant and botanical at once.

Dana

Origin: Uncertain (English/Western, possibly from the surname Dawnay or a form of Daniel)
Pronunciation: DAH-nah · ˈdɑːnə
Meaning: Arabic “close/near/generous” / Hebrew “God is my judge”
Popularity: #1,077 and falling (#976 → #1,077, 2024)

A given name across both Arabic and Hebrew traditions with quiet, warm resonance.

Zara

Origin: English/Hebrew (variant of Sarah) or Arabic
Pronunciation: ZAR-ah · ˈzɑːrə
Meaning: uncertain — either from Sarah (‘princess’) or Arabic zahra (‘flower’)
Popularity: #234 and rising (#236 → #234, 2024)

Widely used in Arabic-speaking countries; also the Italian name for Zadar, Croatia — a name that works anywhere.

Asia and the Pacific: Names From the Far East

From Himalayan peaks to Pacific atolls, this region offers some of the most melodically beautiful place names on earth — many of them already functioning as given names in their home cultures.

Asia

Origin: Greek/Latin (place name, ultimate origin uncertain)
Pronunciation: AY-zhuh · ˈeɪʒə
Meaning: Greek “muddy/boggy” or “east”
Popularity: #1,689 and falling (#1,625 → #1,689, 2024)

The continent name used as a given name; direct, bold, and cross-cultural.

Bali

Origin: place name (Bali, Indonesia, Sanskrit-derived toponym)
Pronunciation: BAH-lee · ˈbɑːli
Meaning: Sanskrit “offering/strength”
Popularity: #6,182 and falling (#5,270 → #6,182, 2024)

The Indonesian island synonymous with ceremony, terraced rice paddies, and offerings; short and beautiful.

Bengal

Origin: Bengali (ultimate root uncertain)
Pronunciation: beng-GAWL · bɛŋˈɡɔːl
Meaning: Sanskrit “land of the Beng people”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Bay of Bengal region spanning India and Bangladesh; literary and rare as a given name.

Ceylon

Origin: Sinhala (via Persian and French)
Pronunciation: say-LON · seɪˈlɒn
Meaning: linked to ‘lion people,’ the ancient name for the island and its people
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Sri Lanka’s former colonial name; rare, elegant, and carries a spice-trade mystique.

Delhi

Origin: Hindi/Persian (root uncertain)
Pronunciation: DEL-ee · ˈdɛli
Meaning: Sanskrit “threshold”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

India’s ancient and modern capital; bold and unusual on a birth certificate outside South Asia.

Fuji

Origin: Japanese
Pronunciation: FOO-jee · ˈfuːdʒi
Meaning: Japanese “wisteria/not two”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The iconic snow-capped volcano; serene and symbolic in Japanese culture, where it represents endurance.

Goa

Origin: Konkani/Sanskrit (place name, root meaning unclear)
Pronunciation: GOH-uh · ˈɡoʊ.ə
Meaning: Konkani “fertile land”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

India’s smallest state is all beach, palms, and Portuguese-influenced architecture; short, stylish, and globally recognizable.

Hana

Origin: Various (Japanese, Hebrew, Arabic, Kurdish, Persian, Hawaiian, Māori, Albanian)
Pronunciation: HAH-nuh · ˈhɑːnə
Meaning: varies by origin: ‘flower’ (Japanese), ‘grace/favor’ (Hebrew, via Hannah), ‘bliss’ (Arabic), ‘hope’ (Kurdish), among others
Popularity: #708 and rising (#727 → #708, 2024)

Also a small town on Maui’s eastern coast; gentle, cross-cultural, and endlessly warm.

India

Origin: English (place name, ultimately Sanskrit)
Pronunciation: IN-dee-uh · ˈɪndiə
Meaning: place name for the country, ultimately ‘river’ (via the Indus)
Popularity: #1,354 and falling (#1,271 → #1,354, 2024)

The subcontinent name has been used as a given name for centuries — India Hicks is probably the most famous living bearer.

Indira

Origin: Sanskrit
Pronunciation: in-DEER-ah · ɪnˈdɪərə
Meaning: an epithet of the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, associated with beauty and splendor
Popularity: #3,055 and rising (#4,224 → #3,055, 2024)

Java

Origin: Sanskrit (place name)
Pronunciation: JAH-vuh · ˈdʒɑːvə
Meaning: from a Sanskrit phrase for an ‘island of grain,’ most often translated as barley
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Indonesian island; also universally associated with coffee, giving the name a warm, caffeinated energy.

Kai

Origin: Germanic/Scandinavian (also popularly linked to Hawaiian)
Pronunciation: KY · ˈkaɪ
Meaning: possibly from Latin Caius, or a Frisian pet form of Gerard/Cornelius/Nicholas (‘warrior’); popularly reinterpreted in the US as Hawaiian for ‘sea’
Popularity: #76 and falling (#61 → #76, 2024)

A place-adjacent name used across Pacific cultures; one of the most cross-cultural names on this list.

Kyoto

Origin: Japanese (Sino-Japanese, from Chinese 京都)
Pronunciation: KYOH-toh · ˈkjoʊ.toʊ
Meaning: capital city
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Lanka

Origin: Sanskrit
Pronunciation: LAHN-kuh · ˈlɑːŋkə
Meaning: ‘island’ in Sanskrit; also the name of the mythical island kingdom of Ravana in the Ramayana
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Sanskrit name for Sri Lanka; rare and lovely, with a mythological connection to the Ramayana.

Leilani

Origin: Hawaiian
Pronunciation: lay-LAH-nee · leɪˈlɑːni
Meaning: heavenly garland of flowers, with a royal connotation
Popularity: #66 and falling (#61 → #66, 2024)

A traditional Hawaiian name with strong place connections; melodic and warm with a natural rhythm.

Lhasa

Origin: Tibetan (place name)
Pronunciation: LAH-suh · ˈlɑːsə
Meaning: ‘land of the gods,’ from Tibetan words for ‘god’ and ‘place’
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Tibet’s sacred capital at 11,000 feet; luminous, rare, and deeply spiritual.

Manila

Origin: Tagalog (place name)
Pronunciation: muh-NIL-uh · məˈnɪlə
Meaning: ‘[place] where the nilad plant grows’ — nilad ultimately from Sanskrit nīla, ‘indigo/dark blue’
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Philippine capital takes its name from a water plant; flowing and unexpectedly poetic.

Maui

Origin: Hawaiian/Polynesian
Pronunciation: MOW-ee · ˈmaʊi
Meaning: Hawaiian “the sun”
Popularity: #5,566 and rising (#6,113 → #5,566, 2024)

The Hawaiian island whose name comes from the demigod Māui; warm, modern, and widely recognized.

Nara

Origin: multiple unrelated possible origins (Sanskrit ‘nara’, man/person, Korean ‘nara’, nation/country, or the Japanese city Nara)
Pronunciation: NAH-rah · ˈnɑːrə
Meaning: Japanese “oak/peaceful”
Popularity: #2,491 and rising (#3,892 → #2,491, 2024)

Japan’s first permanent capital, famous for its free-roaming deer; sweet, simple, and cross-cultural.

Persia

Origin: Greek/Old Persian (place name)
Pronunciation: PUR-zhuh · ˈpɜːrʒə
Meaning: ‘land of the Persians,’ from the ancient region of Parsa, homeland of the Persian people
Popularity: #13,123 as of 2023 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The ancient empire’s Greek name; romantic, historical, and rare as a given name.

Samoa

Origin: Samoan/Polynesian
Pronunciation: suh-MOH-uh · səˈmoʊə
Meaning: Samoan “place of the moa bird”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Polynesian island nation; melodic and warm, with a strong cultural heritage behind it.

Siam

Origin: Sanskrit/Thai (historical place name)
Pronunciation: sy-AM · saɪˈæm
Meaning: ‘dark’ or ‘brown,’ from a Sanskrit word thought to describe skin complexion, though the exact origin is debated
Popularity: #7,174 and rising (#9,606 → #7,174, 2024)

Thailand’s former name; exotic, historical, and rare — carries silk-road and elephant-kingdom associations.

Tahiti

Origin: Tahitian (place name)
Pronunciation: tuh-HEE-tee · təˈhiːti
Meaning: Tahitian “far away land”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The French Polynesian island of Gauguin’s paintings; romantic and sun-drenched.

Tibet

Origin: of disputed origin (Central/Inner Asian)
Pronunciation: tih-BET · tɪˈbɛt
Meaning: possibly Tibetan “heights”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The roof of the world; rare as a given name and quietly profound.

Tonga

Origin: Tongan (from Samoan)
Pronunciation: TONG-guh · ˈtɒŋɡə
Meaning: south, southern
Popularity: #12,726 as of 1986 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Pacific island kingdom; short, musical, and rarely used outside Polynesian communities.

Kauai

Origin: Hawaiian (place name)
Pronunciation: kow-EYE · kaʊˈaɪ
Meaning: Hawaiian “around one’s neck/yoke”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Hawaiian garden island, greenest of them all; rare, lush, and unhurried.

Lombok

Origin: Sasak
Pronunciation: LOM-bok · ˈlɒmbɒk
Meaning: chili pepper
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Indonesian island east of Bali, less crowded and wilder; punchy and distinctive.

Naha

Origin: Japanese/Okinawan (place name)
Pronunciation: NAH-hah · naha
Meaning: Japanese “origin/root”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Okinawa’s capital; short and rare outside Japan.

Latin America and the Caribbean: Warm-Toned Names

Names from this hemisphere carry the warmth of the cultures that built them — Taíno, Quechua, Nahuatl, Portuguese, Spanish, all layered together. Many of these words sound like music before you even know their meanings.

Aruba

Origin: Arawak (disputed)
Pronunciation: uh-ROO-buh · əˈruːbə
Meaning: possibly ‘well-situated,’ though the exact origin is debated
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Dutch Caribbean island; melodic and beachy without being frivolous.

Bahia

Origin: Portuguese
Pronunciation: bah-EE-uh · bɑːˈiː.ə
Meaning: bay
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Brazil’s most Afro-Brazilian state; warm, flowing, and soulful.

Belize

Origin: Maya (disputed, place name)
Pronunciation: buh-LEEZ · bəˈliːz
Meaning: muddy water (most likely, referring to the Belize River); a rival Maya theory gives ‘road to Itzá’
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Central American nation; calm, distinctive, and quietly beautiful as a given name.

Bolivia

Origin: Spanish (from the surname Bolívar, ultimately Basque)
Pronunciation: boh-LIV-ee-uh · bəˈlɪviə
Meaning: named for Simón Bolívar
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The landlocked South American nation named for the Liberator; bold and strong.

Carmen

Origin: Spanish
Pronunciation: KAR-men · ˈkɑːrmən
Meaning: vineyard of God (from Carmel)
Popularity: #416 and rising (#434 → #416, 2024)

Enduring across five centuries; Bizet’s opera gave it fire.

Cuba

Origin: Taíno (place name)
Pronunciation: KYOO-buh · ˈkjuːbə
Meaning: possibly Taíno “great place”
Popularity: #12,895 as of 2008 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The island nation; short, striking, and musically associated.

Havana

Origin: Spanish (place name, ultimately Taíno)
Pronunciation: huh-VAN-uh · həˈvænə
Meaning: Taíno “harbor”
Popularity: #2,510 and rising (#2,563 → #2,510, 2024)

Cuba’s crumbling-glamorous capital; bohemian, smoky-sweet, and unmistakably cool.

Inca

Origin: Quechua
Pronunciation: ING-kuh · ˈɪŋkə
Meaning: a Quechua word for ‘ruler’ or ’emperor,’ the historic title of the rulers of the Inca Empire
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The ancient Andean empire; strong and rare, with a civilizational weight behind it.

Jamaica

Origin: Taíno (place name)
Pronunciation: juh-MAY-kuh · dʒəˈmeɪkə
Meaning: from the Taíno name for the island, usually translated as ‘land of wood and water’
Popularity: #16,233 and falling (#16,160 → #16,233, 2024)

The Caribbean island; melodic and vivid with one of the best meanings on this list.

Lima

Origin: Quechua (place name)
Pronunciation: LEE-mə · ˈliːmə
Meaning: ‘the speaker’ — from Quechua rimay, ‘to speak,’ referring to an oracle/shrine near the site of the city
Popularity: #10,705 and rising (#16,593 → #10,705, 2024)

Peru’s capital; bright, short, and largely unused as a given name in English.

Maya

Origin: Multiple unrelated origins (Sanskrit, also Hebrew/Latin via Maria, or Greek Maia)
Pronunciation: MY-ah · ˈmaɪə
Meaning: illusion (in the Sanskrit-origin usage); in Western usage often a variant of Maria
Popularity: #51 and falling (#50 → #51, 2024)

Ancient Mesoamerican civilization; the name itself predates the Spanish conquest and has spread globally.

Merida

Origin: uncertain: modern coinage (from Mary) or transferred from the Spanish place name Merida
Pronunciation: MEHR-ih-duh · ˈmɛrɪdə
Meaning: Latin “midday/noon”
Popularity: #2,471 and rising (#2,664 → #2,471, 2024)

Bright, clear, and warm; the Pixar film put it on the map for a new generation.

Panama

Origin: Indigenous Panamanian (Cueva/Kuna, uncertain, place name)
Pronunciation: PAN-uh-mah · ˈpænəmɑː
Meaning: Kuna “abundance of butterflies”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Central American isthmus country; melodic and surprising as a given name.

Patagonia

Origin: Spanish (place name, from a literary source)
Pronunciation: pat-uh-GOH-nee-uh · ˌpætəˈɡoʊniə
Meaning: most likely named after ‘Patagón,’ a fictional giant from an early 1500s Spanish novel, rather than literally describing ‘big feet’
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The remote southern tip of South America; adventurous and wild-sounding, for the child who will not be contained.

Rio

Origin: Spanish/Portuguese
Pronunciation: REE-oh · ˈriːoʊ
Meaning: river
Popularity: #516 and rising (#570 → #516, 2024)

Tulum

Origin: Yucatec Maya (place name)
Pronunciation: too-LOOM · tuːˈluːm
Meaning: wall, fence, or fortification
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The cliffside Mayan ruin on Mexico’s Caribbean coast; sleek, modern-sounding despite being ancient.

Yucatán

Origin: Maya (Chontal), of disputed origin
Pronunciation: yoo-kah-TAHN · ˌjuː.kəˈtɑːn
Meaning: possibly Maya “I don’t understand you”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Mexican peninsula; rolling and exotic.

Cali

Origin: modern coinage/short form
Pronunciation: KAY-lee · ˈkeɪli
Meaning: Spanish
Popularity: #495 and falling (#450 → #495, 2024)

Colombia’s salsa capital; punchy, energetic, and bright.

Acapulco

Origin: Nahuatl
Pronunciation: ak-uh-POOL-koh · ˌækəˈpʊlkoʊ
Meaning: place of thick reeds
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Mexico’s legendary Pacific resort city; dramatic and rare.

Cartagena

Origin: Spanish (from Latin Carthago Nova)
Pronunciation: kar-tuh-HAY-nuh · ˌkɑːrtəˈheɪnə
Meaning: ‘new Carthage’ — named after the ancient Phoenician city of Carthage
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Colombia’s walled colonial gem on the Caribbean; layered with history and warmth.

Trinidad

Origin: Spanish (religious)
Pronunciation: TRIN-ih-dad · ˈtrɪnɪdæd
Meaning: the Holy Trinity, three-in-one
Popularity: #5,023 and falling (#4,446 → #5,023, 2024)

The larger half of Trinidad and Tobago; devotional and rhythmic.

Amazon

Origin: Ancient Greek (mythological name), possibly ultimately Old Persian
Pronunciation: AM-uh-zahn · ˈæməzɒn
Meaning: possibly ‘warrior’ (root uncertain)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The world’s mightiest river; bold, mythological, and undeniably powerful.

Orinoco

Origin: South American river name, indigenous-language source uncertain
Pronunciation: or-ih-NO-koh · ˌɔːrɪˈnoʊkoʊ
Meaning: Warao “paddling place”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Andes

Origin: Quechua (via Spanish)
Pronunciation: AN-deez · ˈændiːz
Meaning: east (via the Andes mountain range name)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The world’s longest continental mountain range; strong and soaring.

Bahamas

Origin: Spanish or indigenous Lucayan (disputed)
Pronunciation: buh-HAH-muhz · bəˈhɑː.məz
Meaning: shallow sea (one of two competing theories)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Atlantic island nation; bright and breezy as a name.

The Ancient World: Classical and Mythological Place Names

These names come from civilizations that no longer exist as such — but whose words have never stopped being spoken. There is a particular magic in giving a child the name of a lost city or a mythological landscape.

Aegean

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: ih-JEE-un · ɪˈdʒiː.ən
Meaning: Greek “of the goat/waves”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The sea that separated ancient Greece from Anatolia; mythological and flowing.

Arcadia

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: ar-KAY-dee-uh · ɑːrˈkeɪdiə
Meaning: named for the mountainous Peloponnesian region, traditionally said to be named after the mythological figure Arcas; came to symbolize an idyllic pastoral paradise
Popularity: #6,393 and falling (#5,261 → #6,393, 2024)

The pastoral paradise of Greek mythology; Virgil wrote about it, Shakespeare borrowed it, and it still sounds like a place worth dreaming about.

Avalon

Origin: Welsh/Brythonic Celtic (Arthurian legend)
Pronunciation: AV-uh-lahn · ˈævəlɑːn
Meaning: island of apples
Popularity: #1,602 and rising (#1,782 → #1,602, 2024)

The Arthurian isle where Arthur’s sword was forged and where he was taken to heal; misty, magical, and literary.

Babylon

Origin: Akkadian
Pronunciation: BAB-ih-lon · ˈbæb.ɪ.lɒn
Meaning: gate of god
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Ancient Mesopotamia’s greatest city; powerful and ancient, with a meaning far more beautiful than its pop-culture connotations.

Carthage

Origin: Phoenician
Pronunciation: KAR-thij · ˈkɑːrθɪdʒ
Meaning: new city
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Ancient North Africa’s mightiest civilization; strong, rare, and redolent of lost grandeur.

Corinth

Origin: Greek (ancient place name, likely pre-Greek in origin)
Pronunciation: KOR-inth · ˈkɔːrɪnθ
Meaning: Greek “maiden/girl”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

One of ancient Greece’s most powerful cities; rare and classical as a given name.

Delphi

Origin: Greek (place/oracle name, also short form of Delphine)
Pronunciation: DEL-fy · ˈdɛlfaɪ
Meaning: linked to the Greek root for ‘womb’ (the same root behind the word for dolphin); as a name, references the oracle site or Delphine
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The navel of the ancient world where Greeks came for prophecy; mystical, lyrical, and genuinely rare.

Elysia

Origin: Greek (modern coinage evoking Elysium, the paradise of Greek mythology)
Pronunciation: ih-LEE-zhuh · ɪˈliːʒə
Meaning: blissful, evoking Elysium (paradise)
Popularity: #1,772 and rising (#1,946 → #1,772, 2024)

The Elysian Fields were paradise in Greek mythology; ethereal, dreamlike, and beautiful.

Ionia

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: eye-OH-nee-uh · aɪˈoʊniə
Meaning: Greek “region of the Ionians”
Popularity: #18,696 as of 2007 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The ancient Greek colonial zone of western Turkey; flowing and rare.

Ithaca

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: ITH-uh-kuh · ˈɪθəkə
Meaning: Greek “purposeful/keen”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The island Odysseus spent ten years trying to reach; literary, adventurous, and layered with longing.

Lydia

Origin: Ancient Greek
Pronunciation: LID-ee-ah · ˈlɪdiə
Meaning: originally ‘woman from Lydia’ (a region in Asia Minor); the underlying Greek word also carries a sense of ‘beautiful, noble’
Popularity: #97 and falling (#95 → #97, 2024)

The wealthy kingdom of King Croesus on the western coast of modern Turkey; gentle and enduring, one of the most timeless names on this list.

Olympia

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: oh-LIM-pee-uh · oʊˈlɪmpiə
Meaning: of/from (Mount) Olympus
Popularity: #2,473 and rising (#2,606 → #2,473, 2024)

Where the ancient Olympics were held; strong and radiant, with a competitive spirit in the meaning.

Illyria

Origin: Greek (ancient place name)
Pronunciation: ih-LEER-ee-uh · ɪˈlɪriə
Meaning: possibly related to an ancient word for a serpent or water-creature, though this root is speculative
Popularity: #14,093 and falling (#8,657 → #14,093, 2024)

The mysterious ancient kingdom of the eastern Adriatic; Shakespearean (Twelfth Night is set there) and rare.

Dacia

Origin: Latin (from an earlier Greek name for the Dacian people)
Pronunciation: DAY-shuh · ˈdeɪʃə
Meaning: Latin/Dacian
Popularity: #15,761 and falling (#13,983 → #15,761, 2024)

Rome’s last great conquest under Trajan; strong, short, and nearly unknown as a given name.

Thrace

Origin: Ancient Greek (name for the Thracian people and region)
Pronunciation: THRAYSS · θreɪs
Meaning: linked to an old root meaning “to stir” or “trouble,” via the word for the Thracian people
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The ancient homeland of the mythological musician Orpheus; rare and dramatic.

Thessaly

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: THESS-uh-lee · ˈθɛsəli
Meaning: Greek “ploughland”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Ancient Greek region of myth and magic — where Jason assembled the Argonauts; lyrical and rarely used.

Troy

Origin: Irish (also English/Norman surname from Troyes, France)
Pronunciation: TROY · ˈtrɔɪ
Meaning: foot soldier
Popularity: #531 and falling (#461 → #531, 2024)

Mostly a coincidence of spelling — the given name isn’t derived from the Greek city; it comes from an Irish surname (Troightheach, ‘foot soldier’) or an English/Norman surname from Troyes, France.

Phoenicia

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: fih-NEE-shuh · fɪˈniːʃə
Meaning: ‘purple’ or ‘crimson,’ referring to the famous dye the Phoenicians traded; possibly also linked to an ancient Egyptian word for the Canaanite/Syrian peoples
Popularity: #15,938 as of 1998 — not currently in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The seafaring civilization that gave us the alphabet; rare, evocative, and historically loaded.

Anatolia

Origin: Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: an-uh-TOH-lee-uh · ˌænəˈtoʊliə
Meaning: sunrise, the east
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Asian part of Turkey — home to Troy, Ephesus, and Çatalhöyük; poetic and rare.

Atlantis

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: at-LAN-tis · ætˈlæntɪs
Meaning: land associated with the Titan Atlas
Popularity: #8,356 and falling (#7,324 → #8,356, 2024)

The mythological sunken island; bold, dreamy, and unlikely enough to turn heads.

Sparta

Origin: Ancient Greek (place name)
Pronunciation: SPAHR-tə · ˈspɑːrtə
Meaning: Possibly ‘sown’ or ‘cultivated land’
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Ancient Greece’s warrior city; bold and fierce, short enough to work on a birth certificate.

Corfu

Origin: Greek
Pronunciation: kor-FOO · kɔːrˈfuː
Meaning: named for the twin mountain peaks above its old fortress
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The sun-drenched Greek island; bright and Mediterranean, rare outside Greece.

Mountains, Rivers, and Wild Landscapes

Some of the most powerful place names aren’t cities at all — they’re the things cities grew up beside: the river at the valley floor, the mountain visible for fifty miles, the vast plain that seems to go on forever.

Atlas

Origin: Greek (possibly pre-Greek substrate)
Pronunciation: AT-luss · ˈætləs
Meaning: possibly ‘the enduring one’ (disputed, may be pre-Greek with no recoverable meaning)
Popularity: #101 and rising (#111 → #101, 2024)

The Titan who held up the sky gave his name to Morocco’s mountains; strong, mythological, and direct.

Cascade

Origin: Italian via French, ultimately Latin ‘cadere’ (to fall)
Pronunciation: kas-KAYD · kæsˈkeɪd
Meaning: a waterfall
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The volcanic Pacific Northwest range; flowing and fresh, with the sound of water in the word itself.

Denali

Origin: Koyukon Athabaskan
Pronunciation: duh-NAH-lee · dəˈnɑːli
Meaning: the high one
Popularity: #2,112 and rising (#2,354 → #2,112, 2024)

North America’s highest peak in Alaska; majestic, respectful of Indigenous naming, and genuinely rare.

Euphrates

Origin: Akkadian/Sumerian (via Old Persian and Greek)
Pronunciation: yoo-FRAY-teez · juːˈfreɪtiːz
Meaning: Greek “good to cross over”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

One of the two rivers of Eden; ancient, sweeping, and almost impossibly lyrical for a baby name.

Everest

Origin: English (place name/surname, possibly Norman French)
Pronunciation: EV-er-ist · ˈɛvərɪst
Meaning: named for Mount Everest; the underlying surname is of uncertain, possibly Norman French, origin
Popularity: #845 and falling (#837 → #845, 2024)

Everest isn’t a descriptive word for ‘peak’ — it’s a transferred place name, and the mountain itself was named for surveyor Sir George Everest, whose surname’s own root is uncertain.

Ganga

Origin: Sanskrit
Pronunciation: GUHN-gah · ˈɡʌŋɡɑː
Meaning: the swift-flowing one; name of the sacred Ganges river, personified as a goddess
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Hudson

Origin: English (surname)
Pronunciation: HUD-suhn · ˈhʌdsən
Meaning: patronymic surname, ‘son of Hud/Hudde’ (a medieval pet form of Hugh), later used as a given name
Popularity: #22 and falling (#21 → #22, 2024)

The great New York river; steady, classic, and works beautifully as a given name.

Indus

Origin: Indo-Iranian/Sanskrit (via Old Persian, Greek, Latin)
Pronunciation: IN-dus · ˈɪndəs
Meaning: river
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Kashmir

Origin: Sanskrit (place name)
Pronunciation: kash-MEER · kæʃˈmɪər
Meaning: traditionally explained as ‘land drained of water,’ from a legend that a great lake once covering the valley was emptied
Popularity: #1,230 and falling (#1,219 → #1,230, 2024)

The disputed Himalayan valley famous for its lake, its wool, and its beauty; romantic and loaded with longing.

Kilimanjaro

Origin: Swahili (place name)
Pronunciation: kil-ih-mən-JAR-oh · ˌkɪlɪmənˈdʒɑːroʊ
Meaning: possibly ‘hill of whiteness’ in Swahili, though the exact meaning is debated among linguists
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Tanzania’s snow-capped volcanic peak on the equator; magnificent — admittedly a bold choice for a full given name, but used.

Mara

Origin: Hebrew
Pronunciation: MAR-ah · ˈmɑːrə
Meaning: bitter
Popularity: #588 and falling (#582 → #588, 2024)

The Maasai Mara game reserve in Kenya; vivid, strong, and doubly meaningful.

Murray

Origin: Scottish (place name)
Pronunciation: MUR-ee · ˈmɝːi
Meaning: settlement by the sea (from the place name Moray)
Popularity: #2,726 and falling (#2,285 → #2,726, 2024)

Australia’s longest river runs through Victoria and New South Wales; simple, warm, and works perfectly as a given name.

Neva

Origin: place name (Neva River, Russia)
Pronunciation: NEE-vuh · ˈniːvə
Meaning: Finnish “swamp/marsh”
Popularity: #3,726 and falling (#2,692 → #3,726, 2024)

The river that runs through St. Petersburg; cold and clear-sounding, rare and silvery.

Niger

Origin: Berber/Tuareg (disputed, place name)
Pronunciation: NY-jer · ˈnaɪdʒər
Meaning: possibly from a Berber/Tuareg phrase meaning ‘river of rivers,’ though the origin is genuinely disputed
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The great river of West Africa; brief and strong — used as a given name in francophone Africa.

Niagara

Origin: Iroquoian (place name)
Pronunciation: ny-AG-ruh · naɪˈæɡərə
Meaning: Iroquoian “thundering water”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The world-famous falls; dramatic and powerful, rarely used as a given name and all the more memorable for it.

Rhone

Origin: French (from a pre-Roman Gaulish/Ligurian river name)
Pronunciation: ROHN · roʊn
Meaning: the Rhône River in France/Switzerland
Popularity: #3,951 and rising (#4,089 → #3,951, 2024)

The French-Swiss river that runs from the Alps to the Mediterranean; clean, flowing, and rare.

Serengeti

Origin: Maasai (place name)
Pronunciation: sehr-en-GET-ee · ˌsɛrənˈɡɛti
Meaning: ‘endless plains,’ from a Maasai phrase describing the vast grassland
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Tanzania’s vast migration route; soaring and open, with a meaning that could double as a life philosophy.

Thames

Origin: Brittonic Celtic, ultimately Proto-Indo-European
Pronunciation: TEMZ · tɛmz
Meaning: dark (river/waters)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The river that made London; weighty with history and surprisingly wearable as a name.

Volta

Origin: Portuguese (river name); also an Italian surname
Pronunciation: VOL-tuh · ˈvɒltə
Meaning: turn, return — the West African river was named for the point where Portuguese traders turned back
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The great river running through Ghana; energetic and rare, named by Portuguese explorers.

Yukon

Origin: Gwich’in
Pronunciation: YOO-kahn · ˈjuːkɒn
Meaning: white water river
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Canadian-Alaskan territory and its river; bold, cold-weather, and striking.

Zambezi

Origin: Southern African river name, Bantu language family (exact source disputed)
Pronunciation: zam-BEE-zee · zæmˈbiːzi
Meaning: Tonga “river of the Tonga people”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The African river that feeds Victoria Falls; rolling and vivid.

Zion

Origin: Hebrew
Pronunciation: ZY-un · ˈzaɪən
Meaning: biblical name for Jerusalem’s Temple Mount/city, extended to mean the people of Israel
Popularity: #151 and falling (#125 → #151, 2024)

Utah’s national park and the biblical hill of Jerusalem; spiritual and strong, used across religious and secular contexts.

Danube

Origin: Celtic, ultimately Proto-Indo-European (via Latin Danubius)
Pronunciation: DAN-yoob · ˈdænjuːb
Meaning: river / river goddess
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The river that flows through ten countries; deeply European and rarely used as a given name.

Elbe

Origin: Germanic (pre-Germanic river name)
Pronunciation: EL-buh · ˈɛlbə
Meaning: Germanic “elf-river”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The river of central Europe; rare, silvery, and quietly beautiful.

Fjord

Origin: Old Norse (English common noun)
Pronunciation: FYORD · fjɔːrd
Meaning: a narrow sea inlet between cliffs (nature word used as a name)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Scandinavian coastal inlet; clean and crisp, a nature word that works as a name.

Hidden Gems: Rare Geographical Baby Names

These are the names that will make a naming-obsessed friend say “Wait — that’s a place?” They’re less obvious, less overused, and often carry the most interesting etymological backstories.

Acadia

Origin: Mi’kmaq or Greek (disputed)
Pronunciation: uh-KAY-dee-uh · əˈkeɪdiə
Meaning: fertile land (one of two competing theories, the other tracing to ‘Arcadia’)
Popularity: #4,105 and rising (#4,450 → #4,105, 2024)

The French colonial territory in what is now Atlantic Canada; lyrical, romantic, and genuinely rare.

Altai

Origin: Turkic
Pronunciation: ahl-TY · ælˈtaɪ
Meaning: golden mountain
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Andorra

Origin: Basque or Iberian (uncertain)
Pronunciation: an-DOR-uh · ænˈdɔːr.ə
Meaning: possibly Basque or Iberian
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The tiny Pyrenean microstate between France and Spain; lilting and distinctly unusual.

Aragon

Origin: Spanish (place name, ultimate origin disputed)
Pronunciation: AIR-uh-gon · ˈærəɡɒn
Meaning: possibly Basque “oaks”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The medieval Spanish kingdom of Ferdinand and Isabella; strong, distinctive, and carries crusader-era history.

Arles

Origin: French (place-name, ultimately Gaulish/Latin Arelate)
Pronunciation: ARL · ɑːrl
Meaning: town by the marshes
Popularity: #12,447 and falling (#7,552 → #12,447, 2024)

The Provençal city of Van Gogh’s paintings and Roman amphitheaters; artistic, sunlit, and almost never used as a given name.

Galway

Origin: Irish (place-name, uncertain etymology)
Pronunciation: GAWL-way · ˈɡɔːlweɪ
Meaning: stony
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The vibrant western Irish city; musical and warm, surprisingly rare as a given name even in Ireland.

Haifa

Origin: Semitic (Arabic/Hebrew place name)
Pronunciation: HY-fah · ˈhaɪfə
Meaning: possibly linked to an old Semitic word for ‘rock,’ though the exact derivation is unclear
Popularity: #11,417 and falling (#10,602 → #11,417, 2024)

Israel’s port city on Mount Carmel; clean, warm, and rarely used outside Israel.

Harlow

Origin: Old English (place name/surname)
Pronunciation: HAR-loh · ˈhɑːrloʊ
Meaning: a hill fortified or used by an army — though the first element is disputed and may instead mean ‘rock’
Popularity: #293 and falling (#237 → #293, 2024)

The Essex market town; understated English place name that carries old-soul charm.

Lucca

Origin: Italian (place name: the Tuscan city of Lucca, also used as a variant of Luca)
Pronunciation: LOO-kah · ˈluːkə
Meaning: Celtic/Latin “light”
Popularity: #524 and falling (#494 → #524, 2024)

The perfectly preserved walled Tuscan city; warm, melodic, and slightly more distinctive than Luca.

Madeira

Origin: Portuguese
Pronunciation: muh-DEER-uh · məˈdɪərə
Meaning: wood, or timber
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Atlantic island of wine and volcanic peaks; rich, warm, and rarely used as a given name.

Malta

Origin: Phoenician or Greek (place name, origin genuinely disputed)
Pronunciation: MAWL-tuh · ˈmɔːltə
Meaning: disputed — either ‘refuge/harbor’ (from a Phoenician word for port) or ‘honey’ (from Greek ‘meli’, possibly referencing the islands’ bees)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The island nation at the Mediterranean’s center; short, strong, and layered with Crusader history.

Matera

Origin: pre-Roman place name (Italy)
Pronunciation: mah-TEH-rah · məˈtɛərə
Meaning: Greek “mother”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The ancient cave city in southern Italy, a UNESCO site; rare and deeply rooted.

Modena

Origin: Italian (place name, ultimately Etruscan)
Pronunciation: MOH-deh-nah
Meaning: Latin “modest/measured”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Italian city of Ferrari, Maserati, and Pavarotti; rare, elegant, and surprisingly wearable.

Navarre

Origin: Basque (place name)
Pronunciation: nuh-VAR · nəˈvɑːr
Meaning: ‘plain among the hills,’ a traditional Basque place-name derivation
Popularity: #10,555 and rising (#13,531 → #10,555, 2024)

The historic Spanish kingdom of the Pyrenees; strong, unusual, and carries medieval kingship history.

Palermo

Origin: Greek (via Latin, Arabic, Sicilian, Italian, place name)
Pronunciation: puh-LAIR-moh · pəˈlɛərmoʊ
Meaning: all-harbor (Greek ‘pan-‘ all + ‘hormos’ harbor, referring to the city’s natural anchorage)
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Sicily’s sun-drenched capital; warm and rolling, almost musical.

Ravenna

Origin: Italian (place name, pre-Roman origin, disputed)
Pronunciation: rah-VEN-uh · rəˈvɛnə
Meaning: Latin “raven”
Popularity: #4,088 and rising (#5,346 → #4,088, 2024)

Italy’s mosaic city of Byzantine splendor; dark and beautiful, with Dante buried within its walls.

Riga

Origin: Latvian (place name, capital city, disputed etymology)
Pronunciation: REE-gə · ˈriːɡə
Meaning: Livonian “harbor/port”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Latvia’s art nouveau capital; short, crisp, and rarely heard as a given name in English.

Salamanca

Origin: Spanish (place name, pre-Roman origin, meaning unknown)
Pronunciation: sal-uh-MAHN-kuh · ˌsæləˈmæŋkə
Meaning: possibly Iberian origin
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Spain’s golden university city; melodic, distinctive, and slightly larger-than-life.

Sarajevo

Origin: Turkish (from Persian)
Pronunciation: sah-rah-YAY-voh · ˌsærəˈjeɪvoʊ
Meaning: plain of the palace
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Bosnia’s layered, resilient capital; rare, distinctive, and carries a complicated history that makes the name feel significant.

Sintra

Origin: Portuguese (place name, origin uncertain)
Pronunciation: SEEN-truh · ˈsiːntrə
Meaning: possibly Celtic “bright moon”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Portugal’s fairy-tale palace town in the hills above Lisbon; dreamy and rare.

Trieste

Origin: Italian place name, from Latin Tergeste (pre-Roman root disputed)
Pronunciation: tree-EST · triˈɛst
Meaning: Latin/Celtic “crossroads/confluence”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

The Italian port city of coffee, literature, and Central European nostalgia; rare and sophisticated.

Umbria

Origin: Latin (from the name of the ancient Umbri people)
Pronunciation: UM-bree-uh · ˈʌmbriə
Meaning: named for the ancient Umbri people who lived in the region
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Italy’s green, landlocked heart; quiet, poetic, and carries the weight of rolling hills.

Uppsala

Origin: Old Norse
Pronunciation: OOP-sah-lah · ˈʊpsɑːlə
Meaning: upper halls
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings

Sweden’s great university city; crisp, Scandinavian, and rarely heard outside Sweden.

Urbino

Origin: Italian (place name, Marche region)
Meaning: Latin “city”
Popularity: Not in the U.S. Social Security rankings