“Call him Voldemort, Harry. Always use proper names for things. Fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself.”
- J.K. Rowling, HP
That's the power of names!
Well, I have a few interesting stories about names. My husband's name is Parul and in India Parul is a name for girls. My mother-in-law often narrated the story behind his name, how an influential friend visited them when he was born and suggested this name. It wasn't until he went to school that they realized, there were many girls called Parul and he was the only boy with that name.
The first thing that I asked on meeting him for the first time was about his name. Anyway, now it doesn't matter, only once in a while people call me Parul ma'am or Ms. Parul and I have to correct them, saying that I am Rashmi and Parul is my husbandIn todays virtual world impressions are created by name and pictures that one puts up on social media. A lot of the times our name becomes our first introduction, much before we have even had a real meeting. It is therefore necessary that we give much thought to the names that we choose for our kids. Also choosing wisely becomes important as the name that we give to our kids talks about us. I am sure one doesn’t want to appear frivolous or old fashioned by giving a meaningless or common name to their child.
I have a close friend called “Pupul”, in college she instantly became famous because of her cute sounding unique name, when rest of us had common names like Neha, Rashmi, Pallavi, Priyanka “a Pupul” did stand out! She totally despises her parents for that name, however, I have high regards for them for choosing such a different, meaningful name way back then.
Choosing the right name is mostly one of the most difficult and baffling tasks that confronts the new or to be parents. Esp. in countries like India where the gender remains a surprise till the end. Name is one thing that remains with you forever unless you hate your name so much that you decide to get it changed.
I had started looking for baby names and preparing a list just when I struck my 3rd trimester. However, it took my husband less than a few minutes to zero down on the name for our boy, because the exhaustive list that I had prepared for over 3 months had all baby girls’ names and only a few boy names which made our job easier.
Here I have compiled a list of baby names for boys and girls that I found new, unique and sweet sounding; well that’s my criteria for choosing a name.
Name for baby boys
A
Aabaan- Angel
Aadhir- Moon
Aamil- Doer
Anamaya Name of lord shiva
Araditya/Arayadit noble conqueror
Arain -- godly person
Anadya- lord Krishna
Ashkaan- A dynasty Persian King
Avyukt lord Krishna
E
Eeshayu- Full of strength
Emad- Confidence
Erman- Friend of God in Arabic
I
Idhant- Luminous
Ikshit- Desired
Ishaar- God
L
Lakshin- Auspicious
Lavit- Lord Shiva
Lohitaksh- lord Vishnu
M
Mahin- Earth
N
Naahush- An ancient King
Nehaan- Affectionate
Nihaansh- Beautiful
Nabhya- Lord Shiva
Nirmay- Without blemish
Nirek- Superior
Nevaan means holy
O
Orion- Son of fire
P
Prayan- Supreme intelligent
Pranit- Modest
Pratyaksh- Ostensible/ Obvious
R
Rishaan - Lord Shiva
Rishit- The best
Rovin- Pleasure
Ridhaan- Searcher or seeker
Ruhaan- spiritual
S
Saadik- Trustworthy
Saahir- Wakeful
Saamedh- full of strength
Shaakyaa:- Buddhhaa
Satvat:- Lord Krishna
T
Tarush- Plant/ tree
Trishaan- A king of Surya dynasty
V
Vyaan- Air
Y
Yoram- King (Hebrew)
Yrishi- Surprising
Yogine- Saint, another name for lord Hanuman
Yuvaan Youthful
Yashmit- Famous
Yushaan- Mountain
Z
Zane- Gift from God (Hebrew name)
Ziaan- Peace
Zehaan- Brightness
Name for baby girls
A
Aaraa:lightAashika/aashiqa blessing/mercury/beloved
Araina/ Arahana- Peace/holy
Adhira- Moon
Aishani- Goddess Durga
Aikam- Unity/oneness
Aadrika Mountain
Aashvi- Victorious
Amaaraa-Immortal
Anouk:- Grace
Amishta- limitless/eternal
D
Divijaa- Born in heaven, heavenly
Deetya- Answer to prayers
Dwishaa- Direction or disha
Dhruti- Valiant/ motion/movement
E
Edhaa- Sacred
Ekishaa- One Goddess
J
Jiyana -Strength
Jenisha- Dispeller of ignorance
Jainaa- Good character
K
Kamikaa- Desired
Karnikaa- Heart of lotus
Kavika- Poetess
Keemaya- Divine
Kenisha- Beautiful life
Keya- Flower
Kaashi- Holy city of Varanasi
Krishyaa- Krishna /Shiva
M
Mahiraa - Expert, skilful
Miraya mira, Krishna’s devotee
Mihiraa- Feminine of Sun
Manyaa- Honourable
N
Nayasa Affable, new beginning
Nirvi -- bliss
P
Pariha - A land of fairies
Paanvi- God, Festival
Parashvi- A touchstone that turns iron into gold
S
Sahiti- literature
Samrata - Wealthy, blessed
Sashmita- Ever smiling
Saraa- Pure
Saarya- Pious woman
Saanvi- Goddess Lakshmi
Sehaj -comfort
Sauraa celestial
Seerat- Innate nature/ Quality
Shaarvina Goddess durga
R
Reha -- star in Arabic
Rheaa- a good hearted person
Ruhaani- Soulful
Rayaa- Flow
T
Teesta- A river
Thea:-light in Greek
Tvesha bright
Twishaa- Bright
Tushita- Satisfied
Tishyaa Auspicious fire
Trisha-Thirst
Twarita- Goddess Durga
V
Vaayaala- Time
Viyaa/Vihaa- Heaven
Varalika goddess durga
Z
Zeniaa- Welcoming
Zihvaah- God
Ziaah- Enlightened
Zuhaa- The morning star
While deciding a name we must also consider the pronunciation, an easy to pronounce name has less scope of being spoilt or tweaked by mispronunciation and fewer chances of being understood as something else.
In today’s world while we would like our child to have a name close to our roots we must also keep in mind that the child will grow up and go places, so the name that we give must be simple to understand by people of other nationalities too.
Nice collection ..you can even add my name to the list..isn't it unique ;)
ReplyDeleteI likr your name. This list has only a limited number. Definitely missing many names. :)
DeleteI kept my baby name Aarav but it's seems to be very common these day.. Now I am considering Anagh, what you say babe?
ReplyDeleteTrue.. aarav though a nice name has become too common. Anagh is a nice name.
DeleteHaha, even my son's name is Aarav
DeleteThnx for this... Will surely share this with all my friends who will welcome their baby soon
ReplyDeleteLoved all the names. new mommy and daddy always on lookout for beautiful baby names.
ReplyDeleteI totally believe in the power of names... loved your post and name suggestions
ReplyDeleteA helpful blog 😊
ReplyDeleteWhoa, this post is blessing for new parents. I wish your post would live when i was expecting.
ReplyDeleteWow, so many beautiful and meaningful names... I am bookmarking this post for future and you can understand why....
ReplyDeleteMy name is Mrinal which is a boys name in bengal! I have always been made fun of because of this 😕 seriously choosing unique but cute names for kids is very important today.. nice post
ReplyDeleteA great list! I haven't heard any of these names. You are right, an easy to pronounce name is an excellent tip! My name has been stretched, chopped, consonant and vowel sounds added and deleted at the whims of the speakers 😬☺️☺️
ReplyDeleteWow such an amazing and exhaustive list. Will suggest this to my brother who has been blessed with a baby recently.
ReplyDeleteWow! You surely listed a lot of baby names that are all meaningful, too.
ReplyDeleteI'm from the Philippines and every name here sounds new to me except for Zane and Trisha.
I agree with choosing a name that's easy to pronounce :) I have that mistake for my first child (her name's first syllable is spelled "Jxe" and I get asked every time on how to pronounce it.
Wow. So many baby names. I love Zane and Nabhya.
ReplyDeleteWhat a unique list of names! Will share with my pregnant friend for sure.
ReplyDeleteWowow you have a wonderful list that would come handy for all new moms and dads. Great post.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great compilation.. where were you 11 months ago when I was searching for names for my baby girl :) gonna save this for later :)
ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting story you have shared through this post. Thanks for the names list.
ReplyDeleteI understand you completely. My dad decided to spell my name differently so no one pronounces my name correctly .... I am either Isha or Ayesha but never Esha , just because my dad put an 'A' before E in my name.
ReplyDeleteYour list of names is good, I shall share with few of my expectant friends,
I see my sons' name in the list and he's 7 years old! We've been trending long :)
ReplyDeleteSelecting and finalising baby name was quite a task for us, during my pregnancy last month I caught on the task of shortlisting baby names but to my surprise none of the boy names strike me and I ended up creating a list of baby girl's name. Just imagine we were blessed with a baby boy and had no name for him. Thanks to my hubby who is quite good in giving nicknames, finalised on Nemit which is combination of Neha and Sumit and everybody loves it. Though we do not have a meaning for this name. Loved the list of names you shared, I am saving it. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteWe started thinking of names as soon as we found out I'm pregnant. But we didn't share with anyone. We told the parents also that when baby is here, you will know the name because we were very sure about what we wanted to name her... lol!
ReplyDeleteHaha..In india it is really confusing and hard to guess sometimes if its girls name or boys name. That's a very helpful list for new moms.
ReplyDeleteSuch a nice list of some modern names for babies. Thanks for this as I would be needing it in a few months. :)
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother's name was Parimal which is a male name in general terms. Names are very important according to me. This is a nice list of names.
ReplyDelete