Emmanuelle

Meaning: (God is With Us, Feminine form of Emmanuel.)

Origin: (Hebrew)

Pronunciation: (EE-man-you-el, EE-man-you-el, e-man-WEL, eh-MAN-yoo-EL (English), ay-mahn-WEHL (French))

Gender: Female

 

I have never been a super fan of this name but recently I have seen this on so many people. It is a very exotic sounding and looking name. There are also so many nickname possibilities. Nickname Possibilities: Emmy, Emma, Elle, Manny, Mannie, Em, Newly. The meaning is good and strong. It does have a beautiful look. This name I think could grow on me but I don't think I will use it as character name. I could of course see this on a Latin looking character with flowing black hair and piercing sapphire blue eyes and tan skin.

Dulcie

Meaning: (Sweet, Sweetness, Variant of Dulce. It is derived from the element ‘dulcis’ with the meaning sweet. Is an old form of the name Dulcia (Latin). It is a name in its own right but is sometimes used as a pet form of the name Dulcibella, which is of the same origin. The name was first used by English speakers in medieval times as the forms Dowse and Duce; the modern form of the name enjoyed a revival in the late 19^th Century. It is not a very common name in Britain as it was popular in early 20^th Century and is now thought of as quite dated.)

Origin: (Latin)

Pronunciation: (DUL-cee, DUWLSiy)

Gender: Female, Possibly Uni-Sex

I was watching the movie Drive Me Crazy a few months ago. Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier were the main actor and actress in the film. Melissa’s character looses her date to centennial dance and so she gets her neighbor (Adrian Grenier) who is a slacker to be her date and helps him make his ex-girlfriend jealous and want him back. The ex-girlfriend of the main character (Adrian Grenier) was named Dulcie. I had never been a fan before because I had no idea how to spell it. I googled it and I now kind of really like it.

Arena

Meaning: (An area in a Roman amphitheatre for gladiatorial combats, 19^th Century Americans may have named their daughters Arena as homage to Christian Martyrs who were killed in the Arenas of ancient Rome.)

Origin: (English)

Pronunciation: (uh-REE-nuh, ah-REE-nuh, erIYNah, aa-r-EH-n-ah)

Gender: Female

I really like this name a lot. I was looking up another name I decided not to use right now and I came across this. I have heard of Arena’s but never as a name before. It is a rare name and could indeed have a good reason in novel to be named this. An author can bring the reason for this name being used about in so many ways. The meaning could play a key role if so wished. And it is a word / name people have heard about before so it is easily pronounced. A few good nicknames can be Ren or Rena.

Jaina

Meaning: (God is Gracious; Jehovah has been Gracious, Has Shown Favor, Variant of Jane and Joan.)

Origin: (Hebrew)

Pronunciation: (JAY-na, JHEY-Naa)

Gender: Female

I was watching something a few weeks ago and I saw this name on the info for the show. It is a slightly pretty name with good meanings. It is a good variant if you don’t wish to use the far more popular Jane or Joan. I am not a huge fan but I like the spelling and the pronunciation is easy.

Declan

Meaning: (Full of Goodness, From Deaglan. The name of an Irish Saint (Sixth Century).)

Origin: (Irish)

Pronunciation: (DECK-lan)

Gender: Male

I have debated adding this but after seeing it so much I have decided to. I have never been a fan of this name but recently I was thinking of names for a future character and this popped in my head and I thought of having said character have the nick name Decs or Dex pronounced like Decks. I do like the meanings and sort of like the pronunciation as well.

Triton

Meaning: (Greek Mythological God name for the Messenger of the Sea, he was the son of Poseidon and Amphitrite, god and goddesses of the sea respectively. Triton was depicted as having the head and torso of a man and the tail of a fish.)

Origin: (Greek, Greek Mythology)

Pronunciation: (TRY-ton, tri-tun)

Gender: Male

I saw a truck the other day near my house with this name on the side. People were loading computers on it. This is a strong name with good meanings. It has an interesting history to this name as well. It isn’t a name that I would love to see too much but it is definitely a cool name.

Askja

Meaning: (Askja is a stratovolcano situated in a remote part of the central highlands of Iceland. The name Askja refers to a complex of nested calderas within the surrounding Dyngjufjöll Mountains, which rise to 1,510 m (4,954 ft), askja meaning box or caldera in Icelandic^.)

Origin: (Icelandic, Nordic)

Pronunciation: (AHS-gya)

Gender: Female, Possibly Uni-Sex

I was told this was a name another blogger liked. Drowsy Maggie suggested this. It is a name of a volcano in Iceland. It is a very interesting name. It has a very interesting look and pronunciation especially by English speaker’s terms. It seems a bit sci-fi / fantasy like to me for some reason, like it could fit in another realm or something.

P.S I am always taking name suggestions, some I may use. It will be a while till they are on here if you do suggest some as my name list is pretty long, LOL. :~)

Dylan

Meaning: (Sea, Derived from dylif ‘Flood’; dy ‘Great’; llanw ‘Flow, Tide’. Welsh Mythology: Dylan Eli Ton (‘Son of the Wave’) was the God of the Sea, the son of Aranrhod, and the twin of Lleu Llaw Gyffes. The name has been popularized by the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas (1914-1953), and in modern times by the US folksinger Bob Dylan (1941-). The singer, generally known as Dylan, adopted the poets surname as his stage name after being inspired by the Marshal Matt Dillon character in the popular TV western series Gunsmoke (1955-1975). In the late 20^th Century, the name of the lead character Dylan McKay portrayed by Luke Perry in the primetime TV series Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990-2000). The name Dilyn (English) is the female version of Dylan.)

Origin: (Welsh, Welsh Mythology)

Pronunciation: (DIHLahn (English), DAHLaen (Welsh))

Gender: Uni-Sex

 

I was watching the Syfy show Primeval: New World and one of the female leads is named Dylan. Until then I didn’t see this as Uni-Sex name. I have never been a fan of the name Dylan. I always thought it was used too much and the look and pronunciation always got to me, the wrong way. Now I do know a few Dylan’s and I want them and other Dylan’s to know that I don’t mind their names, I just don’t love them either. I mean as of now I can’t see naming one of my characters this, not to say I won’t but I often don’t name characters after people I know in the real world. Though I would think of using the female version Dilyn.

It is a decent name though and I do however love the meanings and Welsh Mythology surrounding this name. For those that are thinking of using this I could see a bad boy / warrior type character being named this or the total opposite a very nerdy character being named this. This is a very versatile name with a good long history, so it would fit well in many different genres and eras.  

Ishani

Meaning: (The Ruling Goddess, Desire, Variant of Ishana.)

Origin: (Hindi, Sanskrit, Indian)

Pronunciation: (ee-shah-nee, iy-SHaa-Niy)

Gender: Female

I saw that new Disney Pixsar movie Planes advertised the other day and one of the planes is named Ishani. I think this is a really pretty exotic name with really lovely meanings.

Ravensara

Meaning: (A genus of a tree from Madagascar. Often called Clove Nutmeg.)

Origin:  (Latin)

Pronunciation: (RAY-vin-sahr-uh, RAY-vin-sair-uh)

Gender: Female

I saw this name when I was doing research for one of my novels. I am thinking of using it as a characters daughter name, to match the other Latin plant names. I think I really do like this. The combination of Raven & Sara is unique. There is a beautiful exotic look to it but it still just incorporates names we are all familiar with… Raven & Sara.

I pronounce this RAY-vin-sahr-uh because I pronounce Sara, with out an H at the end, as sahr-uh and I pronounce Sarah, with an H, as sair-uh, but either is correct for this name.

Elara

Meaning:  (Is a rare French name, the feminine form of Alar, the name of a Breton (Brittany) saint. St. Alar is Patron Saint of Goldsmiths, Blacksmiths, protectors of horses. Name of one of the moons of Jupiter. Greek Mythology: Elara and Zeus were the parents of Tityus the giant.)

Origin: (Greek Mythology, French)

Pronunciation: (EE-lahrah, EE-la-ra, ehLAHRuh, EE-laruh) 

Gender: Female

I was looking up a name that is an asteroids name and I saw this name. It is pretty and sorts of exotic but still easily pronounced. I really like this name so I don’t have anything more to say, LOL.

Zephyr

Meaning: (Of the West Wind, A Mild Gentle Breeze, Light Breeze, Strong Wind)

Origin: (Greek, Greek Mythology)

Pronunciation: (ZEF-er, ZEHF-er)

Gender: Male

I can’t believe I haven’t added this name as of yet. I have used this name for a character name and I love the look and meanings a lot. The look is other worldly and the meanings are strong.

Analilia

Meaning:  (Ana: Favored Grace, Spanish variant of Anne. Lilia: Lilies, Variant of Lillian, Lily, Lelia. Analilia: Combination of Ana and Lilia.)

Origin: (Spanish, Hebrew)

Pronunciation: (Ana: AHN-ah Lilia: LIL-ee-ah, LEE-lee-ah Analilia: AHN-ah-LIL-ee-ah or AHN-ah-LEE-lee-ah, AANaaLIHL-iy-aa)

Gender: Female

When I was looking up the information on the name Lillia / Lilia *See on list of posts* I saw this combination. I really like it, it sounds exotic. I could see a Spanish beauty named this or a sweet little girl named this. It is a beautiful combination with a beautiful meaning.

Artemisia

Meaning: (Perfect, Also a variant of Artemis and a version of Artemas, a mans name from the Bible. Feminine form of Artemisios. This was the name of the 4^th Century BC builder of the Mausoleum, one of the seven wonders of the world. She built it in memory of her husband, the Carian Prince Mausolus. Also a name of a shrub common in America. Made famous also by Artemisia Gentileschi, a 17^th Century Italian painter.)

Origin: (Greek, Spanish, Biblical)

Pronunciation: (ahr-te-MEE-zhah, Ar-tay-MEE-zee-uh, AARTAHM-ZHAH, Go to this site and run your cursor over the name Artemisia to hear how it is said: http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=artemisia&submit=Submit)

Gender: Female

I have been looking things up about herbs and plants lately for a novel I am writing. I came across this plant name and I absolutely love it. I have decided to use it as a character name. It is a very pretty name and the history is very interesting. So this name could fit just about anywhere in time or even an alternative time line. A few cute nicknames could be Arty, Artie, Misa (Pronounced: MEE-zhah), or Mimi.