Coraline

At a Glance

Meaning

Little coral / an elaboration of Coral

Origin

French (elaboration of Coralie/Coral, literary coinage)

Gender

Girl

Pronunciation

KOR-ah-lineListen

Coraline is a romantic, storybook kind of name for a girl, an elaboration of Coral that means "little coral." It began as a French literary coinage, built from Coralie and Coral. You may see other baby-name sites list meanings like "free man," "heart," "maiden," or "rose garden," but none of those are right: they belong to entirely different names, such as Karl, Cora, and Rosalind.

Meaning & Origin of Coraline

Meaning: Little coral / an elaboration of Coral.

Origin: French (elaboration of Coralie/Coral, literary coinage).

A common claim: Some baby-name sites list unrelated meanings like 'free man,' 'heart,' 'maiden,' or 'rose garden' Actually: None of those are correct — those meanings belong to entirely different names (e.g., Karl, Cora, Rosalind); Coraline is an elaboration of Coral/Coralie referring to coral.

Source: Wiktionary, Wikipedia.

How to Pronounce Coraline

Popularity of Coraline

Coraline does not appear in U.S. Social Security birth-name records (38,443 names on file, 1880–present) — likely too rare, too new, or recorded under a different spelling. No popularity rank or trend is shown rather than an invented one.

Names Like Coraline

These names share Coraline’s style, era or origin.

• Angelica
• Celestine
• Christiana
• Clarabelle
• Dorinda
• Eleanora

FAQ

What does the name Coraline mean?

Little coral / an elaboration of Coral. (Source: Wiktionary)

How do you pronounce Coraline?

Coraline is pronounced KOR-ah-line (IPA: /ˈkɔːrəlaɪn/).

Make Coraline Name Art

Free printable nursery art for Coraline, pre-loaded below — pick a layout, palette, and font, then download a print-ready PNG.