10 Unique and Meaningful Name Ideas for Your Baby

No one wants to call out their child’s name on an open playfield and have about 20 kids turn their heads towards you. There’s a certain anonymity that comes with slapping on a generic name to your child’s identity, it’s like having a grain of rice fall into a sack of other similar grains of rice. Naming is prone to influence from a number of factors like pop culture, social influence, tribal or familial heirlooms and so on. While it’s more popular to name your child after your favorite mythical book character, pop stars, celebrities, and whatnot and though there’s nothing wrong with this, there are other parents who believe in the precedence a name sets for a child’s destiny, they search for names that are unique and unusual, names that are turgid with profound meanings– after all, there’s a story to every name, right? 

1. Adlai

“God is just”

This is a Hebrew name given to a boy that translates literally to “God is just”. Other nuances to its etymology also posit it to mean “Justice of the Lord”. 

In the bible, he was father to one of King David’s chief herdsmen, Shaphat. A similar Assyrian derivation of this name translates to “Hero”.

2. Channah

“God’s favor”

This is a girl’s name from Hebrew that translates into “God’s favor” or “God’s grace”. If there was an “unusual”-ity index to our name-list today, Channah would rate really high as the United States Social Security Administration recorded only 205 name entries to this effect from the period between 1880 and 2017. Mindblowing stuff right?!

3. Elizaphaan

“God has protected”

Also of biblical origins and Hebrew descent, Elizaphan in the bible held an autonomous familial dominance past the reign of King David up until the reign of King Hezekiah. Other etymological nuances to this name translate it to mean “A watchman’s gaze”, “A golden protection”.

4. Fionnuala

“Fair shoulder”

This is a feminine name with origins rooted in the Irish Gaelic legend, Children of Lir. The name is anglicized as “Fenella” (is the Irish variant really that hard to pronounce?)

5. Samsara

“A wandering through”

Now, one would first go up in arms about this Sanskrit-derived name but taking a minute to delve into its origins would reveal the depth behind the name. The name connotes the human circuitous journey between life, death, and rebirth. Its meaning revolves around the notion that whatever one does in their current life will be mirrored through karma in their subsequent lives. Quite profound, ya agree?

6. Arlen

“Pledge” 

A Gaelic-derived name which means “pledge” or “oath”, also has a rarity index that’s quite high. The only thing I see to naming your child this would be when they’re all grown and someone asks the meaning of their name and right after getting a response they go “yeah, so I can count on you to never go back on your word right?” Already stressed on behalf of the child. 🙁

7. Inigo

“Fiery”

Pronounced “ee-nyee-goh”, this name stems from a Basque canonical origin. Though you risk people confusing your child’s name for “Indigo” but if your child stays true to the meaning of their name, we very much doubt any more of such mistakes will be made in the days to come.

8. Abha

“Brightness”

The second Sanskrit-derived name on our list with quite the profundity also, a beautiful name match for a bubbly little baby girl. Its Indian cognate conjure even more light rays as it means “luminous”, “splendor”, “shine”.

9. Zion

“Highest point”

More known for its biblical connotation to mean “Promised Land” but still quite uncommon as a name choice for parents especially in the US. Its more generic meaning “highest point” refers to the tallest citadel that was at the center of ancient Jerusalem at the time. 

10. Hannelore

“God is gracious”

This is a German-derived name that you’d agree has a lot of beautiful nickname options and a more unique variant of the more common Anna-Laura which may first come to mind on pronouncing this name.

Andddd that caps it! Which names kept your tongue in a lock and which ones left the feel of chirping birds in your ears?