New to Bounty?
By Nicola Conville
Are you seeking baby name inspiration? Check out our top 50 list of popular northern European and western European baby names.
READ NEXT: Baby names inspired by Peaky Blinders
European baby names for girls
1/25
CELESTE
Origin and meaning: This beautiful star-inspired name is based on the Latin word “caelestis” meaning “heavenly.”
Famous namesakes: Comedian Celeste Barber.
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2/25
SELMA
Origin and meaning: Of old German origin meaning ‘Godly helmet.’
Famous namesakes: Actresses Selma Blair and Selma Hayek.
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3/25
QUEENIE
Origin and meaning: Of English origin meaning ‘Queen’.
Famous namesakes: Indigenous artist Queenie McKenzie.
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4/25
JACQUELYN
Origin and meaning: This common French name is the feminine form of the boy name Jacob. It means both “supplanter” and “may God protect.”
Famous namesakes: Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, actress Jacqueline Bisset.
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5/25
ROSALIND
Origin and meaning: A lovely and unique moniker of Spanish origin meaning ‘pretty rose’.
Famous namesakes: Movie star Rosalind Russell. Uma Thurman also named her youngest child Rosalind.
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6/25
PENELOPE
Origin and meaning: This cute feminine moniker is of Greek origin and means ‘weaver’.
Famous namesakes: Actress Penelope Cruz. Also a Harry Potter character.
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7/25
GISELLE
Origin and meaning: The origin of this French name comes from “gisil,” which was another term for a peace offering between cities in the Middle Ages.
Famous namesakes: Model Giselle Bundchen.
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8/25
MADELINE
Origin and meaning: The posh French name Madeline also means “from the tower.”
Famous namesakes: Costume designer Madeline Fontaine, snowboarder Madeline Schaffrick.
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9/25
ARLENE
Origin and meaning: Arleen or Arlene is an Irish female given name and variant of Carlene or Charlene and in the French derived from feminine diminutive of Charles.
Famous namesakes: Mountaineer Arlene Blum, 1950s actress Arlene Dahl.
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10/25
LUCIE
Origin and meaning: The name Lucie means “light.” The spelling makes it uniquely French.
Famous namesakes: French resistance leader Lucie Aubrac, actresses Lucille Ball, Lucy Lawless and Lucy Liu.
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11/25
GABRIELLE
Origin and meaning: This pretty, French, sweet-sounding name means “woman of God,” and is a feminine form of the Hebrew name Gabriel.
Famous namesakes: Volleyball player Gabrielle Reece, actress Gabrielle Union.
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12/25
ELOISE
Origin and meaning: This classic French name means “famous warrior.”
Famous namesakes: Model and actress Eloise Broady.
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13/25
SAOIRSE
Origin and meaning: The Irish name Saoirse means “freedom” and is pronounced “Seer-Sha”. Due to that fact that it’s difficult to pronounce it’s quite rare to see it used outside Ireland.
Famous namesakes: Actress Saoirse Ronan.
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14/25
NATALIE
Origin and meaning: If your due date is close to Christmas, you should consider this pretty French name for your baby girl. It means “Born at Christmas.”
Famous namesakes: Natalie Portman.
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15/25
SIOBHAN
Origin and meaning: Siobhan is another Irish form of Joan meaning “God is gracious.”
Famous namesakes: Singer Siobhan Fahey, actress Siobhan McKenna.
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16/25
BELLE
Origin and meaning: The name Belle has origins all over the world, including in France. It means “beautiful.”
Famous namesakes: Outlaw Belle Starr.
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17/25
ADA
Origin and meaning: Ada is of German origin meaning noble, nobility.
Famous namesakes: Actress Ada Nicodemou.
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18/25
AGNES
Origin and meaning: The name Agnes is a girl’s name of Greek origin meaning ‘pure, virginal’.
Famous namesakes: Model Agness Deyn. Agnes is also one of the characters in the funny movie Minions, while Jennifer Connelly and Paul Bettany named their daughter Agnes Lark.
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19/25
LILLIAN
Origin and meaning: Of English and Latin origin, Lillian is derived from Lily, meaning a flower.
Famous namesakes: American actress Lillian Gish, singer Lily Allen.
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20/25
ELSIE
Origin and meaning: This Scottish name means ‘my God is bountiful’ or God of Plenty.
Famous namesakes: Actors Ioan Gruffudd and Zooey Deschanel both named their daughters Elsie.
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21/25
AISLING
Origin and meaning: Aisling is an Irish language feminine given name meaning “dream” or “vision” and referring to an aisling, a poetic genre that developed during the late 17th and 18th century in Irish language genre poetry. The name is pronounced “Ash-Ling”
Famous namesakes: Comedian Aisling Bea.
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22/25
PENELOPE
Origin and meaning: This feminine moniker is of Greek origin and means ‘weaver’.
Famous namesakes: Actress Penelope Cruz.
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23/25
WINIFRED
Origin and meaning: A cute Welsh name meaning ‘blessed peacemaking’.
Famous namesakes: Winnie Mandela. Winnie was also one of the female characters on the TV show The Wonder Years.
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24/25
BERNADETTE
Origin and meaning: Bernadette is of German origin and means ‘brave as a bear.’
Famous namesakes: St Bernadette was an Irish saint who saw a vision at Lourdes. Bernadette Peters in an American actress and singer.
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25/25
CHARLOTTE
Origin and meaning: This popular name is of French origin and means ‘free man’.
Famous namesakes: Well-known Charlottes include the Princess of Cambridge, English author Charlotte Bronte, and Charlotte York, a character in Sex and the City.
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European baby names for boys
1/25
CATHAL
Origin and meaning: Cathal was a common name in medieval Ireland and is still popular today. It’s pronounced “Kaw-hal”.Means ‘great warrior’.
Famous namesakes: Singer Cathal Coughlan.
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2/25
EARL
Origin and meaning: A popular English name meaning ‘warrior’ or ‘nobleman.’
Famous namesakes: American actor James Earl Jones and British/Australian actor Earl Cave, son of musician Nick Cave and model Susie Bick.
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3/25
LIAM
Origin and meaning: Liam is the Irish derivation of the name William.
Famous namesakes: Irish singer Liam O’Maonlai, actor Liam Neeson.
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4/25
CHARLES
Origin and meaning: Charles is of French and German origin meaning ‘free man.’
Famous namesakes: Actor Charlie Chaplin, Charlie Sheen, jazz musician Charles Mingus, and many Royal kings.
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5/25
ALBERT
Origin and meaning: Of German origin meaning ‘noble, bright.’
Famous namesakes: Theoretical physicist Albert Einstein and British actor Albert Finney. Albert is also a popular Royal name.
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6/25
OTIS
Origin and meaning: Of German origin meaning ‘wealthy’.
Famous namesakes: American soul singer Otis Redding. Otis Frey, son of The Eagles’ Glenn Frey.
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7/25
ARTHUR
Origin and meaning: A name of Celtic origin meaning ‘bear’.
Famous namesakes: Arthur was the head knight at the round table, and there have been many other distinguished Arthurs including writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, playwright Arthur Miller and tennis great Arthur Ashe.
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8/25
OSCAR
Origin and meaning: An Irish name meaning ‘friend of deer’ or ‘spear of God’.
Famous namesakes: Playwright Oscar Wilde, American actor Oscar Isaac.
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9/25
THEODORE
Origin and meaning: A boy’s name of Greek origin meaning ‘gift of God’.
Famous namesakes: US President Theodore Roosevelt. American writer Theodor Seuss Geisel (Dr Seuss).
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10/25
NIALL
Origin and meaning: This name of Irish origin means “passionate”. One of the High Kings of Tara bore this name. It’s pronounced ‘Nile’.
Famous namesakes: Singer Niall Horan, footballer Niall Quinn.
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11/25
LOUIS
Origin and meaning: A name of French origin meaning ‘renowned warrior’.
Famous namesakes: American jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong, Louis Bullock, son of American actress Sandra Bullock.
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12/25
HENRY
Origin and meaning: Of German origin meaning ‘estate ruler’.
Famous namesakes: Prince Henry (Harry), US author Henry David Thoreau, English sculptor Henry Moore.
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13/25
GEORGE
Origin and meaning: Despite being a popular name for royalty, this humble name is of Greek origin and means ‘farmer’.
Famous namesakes: Beatles guitarist George Harrison, composer George Gershwin and Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw. George is also the name of Prince William and Kate Middleton’s first son.
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14/25
GABRIEL
Origin and meaning: This popular French name is derived from the Hebrew gavrīēl (God is my strength).
Famous namesakes: Actor Gabriel Byrne, footballer Gabriel Batistuta.
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15/25
EMMETT
Origin and meaning: A German name meaning ‘powerful’.
Famous namesakes: Irish actor Emmett Scanlan.
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16/25
PIERRE
Origin and meaning: This French name is derived from the name Peter and means “rock” or “stone.”
Famous namesakes: Fashion designer Pierre Cardin.
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17/25
EDWIN
Origin and meaning: Another English name, meaning ‘wealthy friend’.
Famous namesakes: Astronaut Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin.
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18/25
SEAN
Origin and meaning: Seán is the Irish form of John and means “gracious gift of God.”
Famous namesakes: British actor Sean Bean, singer Sean Combs.
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19/25
HARVEY
Origin and meaning: A name of French origin meaning ‘battle worthy’.
Famous namesakes: American actor Harvey Keitel, politician and activist Harvey Milk.
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20/25
FREDERICK
Origin and meaning: Of German origin meaning ‘peaceful ruler’.
Famous namesakes: Actor and dancer Fred Astaire and English novelist Frederick Forsyth. Frederick is also a popular royal name.
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21/25
EUGENE
Origin and meaning: Of Greek origin meaning ‘wellborn, noble’.
Famous namesakes: Playwright Eugene O’Neill, also lead singer of rock band Kiss, Gene Simmons.
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22/25
DIEGO
Origin and meaning: This Spanish name is derived from the English names James and means “supplanter.”
Famous namesakes: Actor Diego Luna, star of Netflix show Narcos Mexico, artist Diego Rivera.
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23/25
EDGAR
Origin and meaning: An English name meaning ‘wealthy spearman’.
Famous namesakes: Author and poet Edgar Allan Poe, Kind Edgar of Scotland.
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24/25
VIGGO
Origin and meaning: This popular Scandinavian name means “battle” or “fight.”
Famous namesakes: Actor Viggo Mortensen.
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25/25
FINLEY
Origin and meaning: A Celtic name meaning ‘fair-haired hero.’
Famous namesakes: Reggae musician Finley Quaye. Actor Chris O’Donnell also called his son Finley.
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This article first appeared on Practical Parenting and has been republished with permission.
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