How popular is the baby name Orchid in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Orchid.

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Popularity of the baby name Orchid


Posts that mention the name Orchid

Baby names associated with orange: Autumn, Ember, Saffron, Blaze

Orange-colored leaves in autumn

Looking for baby names that are associated with the color orange — including baby names that mean “orange”?

If so, you’re in luck — I’ve collected dozens of ideas for you in this post.

But, before we get to the names, let’s take a look at what the color orange represents…

Symbolism of orange

What does the color orange signify?

In Western cultures in particular, orange can be symbolic of:

  • Warmth
  • Creativity
  • Adventure
  • Freshness
  • Happiness
  • Attraction
  • Success

It can also be associated with safety. A vivid reddish-orange — one that contrasts well with the blue of the sky — is used to make clothing and equipment highly visible in certain circumstances (e.g., at construction sites, during hunting season).

In Eastern cultures, orange is considered a sacred color. In Hinduism, for example, orange represents fire and, thereby, purity (as impurities are burned away by fire).

Orange-colored flames of a fire

Baby names associated with orange

All of the names below have an association with the color orange. The names range from common to uncommon, and their associations range from strong to slight.

Those that have been popular enough to appear in the U.S. baby name data are linked to their corresponding popularity graphs.

Aethon and Aithon
Aethon, also spelled Aithon, is derived from the Ancient Greek word aithon, which means “burning, blazing.”

Aki
Aki is a Japanese name that can mean “autumn,” depending upon the kanji being used to write the name. Here’s the popularity graph for Aki.

Alba
Alba is a feminine name meaning “dawn” in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Romanian, and other Romance languages. Here’s the popularity graph for Alba.

Amber
The word amber refers to fossilized tree resin that is commonly used as a gemstone. By extension, the word also refers to the yellowish-orange color of this material. The fossilized resin, which washes up on the seashore in the Baltic region, came to be called “amber” during the Middle Ages — likely due to an association with ambergris (a material produced by sperm whales that also washes up on the shore). Here’s the popularity graph for Amber.

Anatole
Anatole is the modern French masculine form of Anatolius. Here’s the popularity graph for Anatole.

Anatolia
Anatolia is a feminine form of Anatolius. Here’s the popularity graph for Anatolia.

Anatolios
Anatolios was an Ancient Greek name derived from the word anatole, meaning “sunrise.”

Anatolius
Anatolius is the Latinized form of Anatolios.

Anatoliy
Anatoliy is the modern Russian and Ukrainian masculine form of Anatolius. Here’s the popularity graph for Anatoliy.

Apricot
Apricot fruits are yellowish-orange. Apricot trees are part of the genus Prunus.

Aurora
Aurora, the Latin word for “dawn,” was the name of the Roman goddess of dawn. Here’s the popularity graph for Aurora.

Autumn
The word autumn refers to the season during which the leaves of deciduous trees turn various colors, including orange. Halloween — a holiday strongly associated with the color orange — is also celebrated during Autumn (at least in the Northern Hemisphere). Here’s the popularity graph for Autumn.

Azar
Azar is a Persian gender-neutral name meaning “fire.” Here’s the popularity graph for Azar.

Blaze
The vocabulary word blaze refers to a fire, particularly one that’s burning intensely. Blaze is also a homophone of the (more traditional) name Blaise, which ultimately derives from the Latin word blaesus, meaning “lisping.” Here’s the popularity graph for Blaze.

Canna
Canna flowers are sometimes orange. The genus name Canna is derived from the Latin word canna, meaning “reed.” Here’s the popularity graph for Canna.

Carnelian
Carnelian, a variety of the mineral chalcedony, is frequently orange. The name of the stone ultimately comes from the Latin word cornus, which refers to a type of berry, altered by the influence of the Latin word carneus, meaning “flesh-colored.”

Chrysanthemum
Chrysanthemum (pronounced krih-SAN-thuh-muhm) flowers are often orange. The genus name Chrysanthemum is derived from a combination of the Ancient Greek words khrysos, meaning “gold,” and anthemon, meaning “blossom, flower.” Here’s the popularity graph for Chrysanthemum.

Citrine
Citrine, a variety of the mineral quartz, is usually orange. The adjective citrine can be traced back to the Latin word citrus. Here’s the popularity graph for Citrine.

Clementine
Clementine fruits are a cross between mandarin orange and sweet orange. They were named after French priest Clément Rodier, who discovered the cultivar while in Algeria. The name Clément is derived from the Latin word clemens, meaning “merciful.” Here’s the popularity graph for Clementine.

Copper
Copper is a metallic element with a lustrous orange-brown color. Here’s the popularity graph for Copper.

Dahlia
Dahlia flowers are sometimes orange. The genus Dahlia was named in honor of Swedish botanist Anders Dahl. Here’s the popularity graph for Dahlia.

Dawn
Dawn refers to the period of time in the early morning (before sunrise) when the sky begins to brighten with daylight. This light at dawn tends to have an orange hue. The word dawn can be traced back to the Old English verb dagian, meaning “to become day.” Here’s the popularity graph for Dawn.

Dysis
Dysis, the Ancient Greek word for “sunset,” was the name of the Greek goddess of the hour of sunset.

Ember
The word ember refers a glowing, slowly burning piece of solid fuel (like wood or coal). It’s often used in the plural to refer to the smoldering remains of a fire. Here’s the popularity graph for Ember.

Eos
Eos, the Ancient Greek word for “dawn,” was the name of the Greek goddess of dawn.

Fajr
Fajr is an Arabic feminine name meaning “dawn.” Here’s the popularity graph for Fajr.

Fiamma
Fiamma (pronounced FYAM-ma) is an Italian feminine name meaning “flame.” Here’s the popularity graph for Fiamma.

Fox
Fox fur, if you’re talking about the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), is largely orange. The word fox is ultimately derived from a Proto-Indo-European word meaning “tail.” Here’s the popularity graph for Fox.

Gaeul
Gaeul is a Korean gender-neutral name meaning “autumn.”

Gladiola
Gladiola refers to Gladiolus, a genus of plants with flowers that are sometimes orange. The genus name, meaning “little sword” (a diminutive of the Latin word gladius, “sword”) refers to the shape of the leaves. Here’s the popularity graph for Gladiola.

Helen
Helen is a form of the Ancient Greek name Helene, which is likely based on the word helene, meaning “torch.” Also, plants of the genus Helenium have flowers that are sometimes orange. The genus was named in honor of Helen of Troy. Here’s the popularity graph for Helen.

Honey
Honey can be orange. The Old English word for “honey” was hunig. Here’s the popularity graph for Honey.

Iskra
Iskra is a feminine name meaning “spark” in Russian, Serbian, Croatian, Bulgarian, and other Slavic languages. Here’s the popularity graph for Iskra.

Jack
Jack is part of “Jack-o’-Lantern” — a term that, since the 1800s, has referred to a carved pumpkin used as a lantern during Halloween. It originated as “Jack of the lantern” in 17th-century England, where it was used as a generic term for any lantern-carrying night watchman. Here’s the popularity graph for Jack.

Frederic Leighton's painting "Flaming June" (1895)
“Flaming June”

June
June (besides being a month) is part of “Flaming June” — the name of the 1895 painting by Frederic Leighton. “Flaming June” features a red-headed woman wearing a diaphanous orange dress and sleeping by the sea (which reflects the golden rays of the setting sun). Here’s the popularity graph for June.

Keahi
Keahi is a Hawaiian gender-neutral name meaning “the fire.” Here’s the popularity graph for Keahi.

Kealaula
Kealaula is a Hawaiian gender-neutral name that means “the light of early dawn” or “the sunset glow.” The literal definition is “the flaming road” (ala means “path, road,” and ula means “to flame”).

Marigold
The word marigold refers to any flowering plant of either the New World genus Tagetes or the Old World genus Calendula. By extension, it also refers to the yellowish-orange color of these flowers. Here’s the popularity graph for Marigold.

Meli
Meli was the Ancient Greek word for “honey.” Here’s the popularity graph for Meli.

Monarch
Monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) have wings that are largely orange. They were named “monarch” in the 1800s, possibly in honor of England’s King William III, who was also the Prince of Orange. The word is derived from a combination of the Ancient Greek words monos, meaning “alone,” and arkhos, meaning “ruler.” Here’s the popularity graph for Monarch.

Neven
Neven is a masculine name meaning “marigold” in Serbian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Slovene, and other Slavic languages. Here’s the popularity graph for Neven.

Nevena
Nevena is the feminine form of Neven. Here’s the popularity graph for Nevena.

Orange
Orange, of course, refers to the color orange. :) Orange fruits were introduced to Europe by the Moors in the 10th century. The word for the fruit, which can be traced back to Sanskrit, entered the English language (via French) in the late 14th century. The first recorded use of “orange” as a color name in English didn’t come along until the early 16th century. (This explains why many things that are clearly orange — like red hair, red foxes, and the robin redbreast — are called “red”: They were named long before the color-word “orange” entered the English language!) Here’s the popularity graph for Orange.

Orchid
Orchid flowers are sometimes orange. Orchids are all members of the Orchidaceae family of plants. Here’s the popularity graph for Orchid.

Oriole
Oriole is a type of bird that often has orange plumage. “Oriole” is the common name of birds in the genera Icterus and Oriolidae. The common name is derived from the Latin word aureolus, meaning “golden.” Here’s the popularity graph for Oriole.

Peach
Peach fruits are typically orange. Peach trees are part of the genus Prunus. Here’s the popularity graph for Peach.

Pele
Pele, the Hawaiian word for “lava flow, volcano, eruption,” was the name of the Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes. Here’s the popularity graph for Pele.

Pyrrha
Pyrrha is the feminine form of Pyrrhus. Here’s the popularity graph for Pyrrha.

Pyrrhos
Pyrrhos, meaning “flame-colored,” was an Ancient Greek name derived from the word pyr, meaning “fire.”

Pyrrhus
Pyrrhus is the Latinized form of Pyrrhos.

Robin
Robin redbreast originally referred to the Old World songbird Erithacus rubecula, which has orange plumage on the face and breast. “Robin” is a Middle English diminutive of the name Robert. Here’s the popularity graph for Robin.

Roth
Roth comes from a German surname that can be traced back to the Middle High German word rot, meaning “red.” It was originally a nickname for a red-haired person. Here’s the popularity graph for Roth.

Rowan
Rowan is an Anglicized form of Ruadhán. Here’s the popularity graph for Rowan.

Roy
Roy is an Anglicized form of Ruadh. Here’s the popularity graph for Roy.

Ruadh
Ruadh (pronounced roo-ah) means “red” or “red-haired” in Irish and Scottish Gaelic.

Ruadhán
Ruadhán is a diminutive form of Ruadh.

Rufina and Rufino
Rufina (feminine) and Rufino (masculine) are the modern Spanish forms of the Roman family name Rufinus, which was based on Rufus. Here are the popularity graphs for Rufina and Rufino.

Rufus
Rufus derives from the Latin word rufus, meaning “red” or “red-haired.” Here’s the popularity graph for Rufus.

Rusty
Rusty is an adjective referring to rust (iron oxide), which tends to be orange-brown. Here’s the popularity graph for Rusty.

Saffron
Saffron is a spice made from the styles and stigmas of Crocus sativus flowers. By extension, the word — which can be traced back to the Arabic name for the spice, za’faran — also refers to the deep yellowish-orange color of fabrics dyed with saffron. Here’s the popularity graph for Saffron.

Seville
Seville orange is a variety of bitter orange named after the Spanish city of Sevilla. Here’s the popularity graph for Seville.

Shachar
Shachar is a Hebrew gender-neutral name meaning “dawn.”

Shraga
Shraga is an Aramaic masculine name meaning “candle.” Here’s the popularity graph for Shraga.

Shula
Shula is an Arabic feminine name meaning “flame.” Here’s the popularity graph for Shula.

Smith
Smith comes from a surname that originally referred to a metalworker, such as a blacksmith or a farrier. When heated metal (like iron) comes out of a fire to be forged, it’s often glowing a yellowish-orange color. The smith in “blacksmith” is likely derived from the Old English verb smitan, meaning “to smite” or “to strike” (as with a hammer). Here’s the popularity graph for Smith.

Sunrise and Sunset
Sunrise and Sunset are times at which the sun appears reddish-orange. Particles in the Earth’s atmosphere scatter more short-wavelength light than long-wavelength light, so when the sun is low on the horizon — and its light is traveling a longer distance through the atmosphere to reach your eyes — you’ll end up seeing less violet and blue, and more red and orange. Here are the popularity graphs for Sunrise and Sunset

Tangerine
Tangerine fruits are orange. Tangerine trees are part of the genus Citrus. Here’s the popularity graph for Tangerine.

Tawny
Tawny is an adjective that refers to a brownish-orange color. Here’s the popularity graph for Tawny.

Tiger
Tiger (Panthera tigris), the largest living species of cat, has fur that is mostly orange. Here’s the popularity graph for Tiger.

Tigerlily
Tigerlily refers to “tiger lily,” the common name of several species of flowering plant in the genus Lilium — particularly the species Lilium lancifolium — that have showy orange flowers. Here’s the popularity graph for Tigerlily.

Ushas
Ushas, the Sanskrit word for “dawn,” was the name of the Vedic (Hindu) goddess of dawn.

Valencia
Valencia orange is a cultivar of sweet orange named after the Spanish city of València. Here’s the popularity graph for Valencia.

Zinnia
Zinnia flowers are sometimes orange. The genus Zinnia was named in honor of German botanist Johann Gottfried Zinn. Fun fact: An orange zinnia blossomed in space in early 2016! Here’s the popularity graph for Zinnia.

Zora
Zora is a feminine name meaning “dawn” in Serbian, Czech, Croatian, Bulgarian, and other Slavic languages. Here’s the popularity graph for Zora.

Can you think of any other names that have a connection to the color orange?

P.S. Want to see more color-related baby names? Here are lists of red, yellow, green, blue, and purple names.

Sources:

Images:

[Latest update: Dec. 2023]

Baby names associated with purple: Violet, Amethyst, Tyrian, Plum

purple twilight

Looking for baby names that are associated with purple — including baby names that mean “purple”?

If so, you’ve come to the right place! I’ve collected dozens of options for you in this post.

Before we get to the names, though, let’s take a quick look at what the color purple represents…

Symbolism of purple

What does the color purple signify?

In Western cultures in particular, purple can be symbolic of:

  • Royalty
  • Nobility
  • Wisdom
  • Luxury
  • Imagination
  • Mystery
  • Spirituality

The color came to be identified with royalty and nobility during ancient times. In those days, creating purple dye for fabric was laborious and time-consuming, so the dye was very expensive. As a result, only the wealthy could afford to wear purple-colored clothing.

purple flowers (aubrieta)

Baby names associated with purple

All of the names below are associated with the color purple. The names range from traditional to unusual, and their associations range from strong to slight.

Those that have been popular enough to appear in the U.S. baby name data are linked to their corresponding popularity graphs.

Amaranth
Amaranth flowers are sometimes purple. The genus name Amaranthus is derived from a combination of the Ancient Greek words amarantos, meaning “unfading,” and anthos, meaning “flower.” Here’s the popularity graph for Amaranth.

Amethyst
The word amethyst refers to a purple variety of the mineral quartz. (The Ancient Greeks thought that amethyst — perhaps due to its wine-like color — would prevent drunkenness, so they called it amethustos, meaning “not intoxicating.”) By extension, the word also refers to the purple color of these crystals. Amethyst will only form in quartz that: (a) contains trace amounts of iron, and (b) is exposed to low-level gamma radiation. The radiation will oxidize the iron, and thereby change the crystal’s color from clear to purple. Here’s the popularity graph for Amethyst.

Aster
Aster flowers are often purple. The genus name Aster, derived from the Ancient Greek word aster, meaning “star,” is a reference to the shape of the flower head. Here’s the popularity graph for Aster.

Aubrieta
Aubrieta flowers are commonly purple. The genus Aubrieta was named in honor of French botanical artist Claude Aubriet.

Azalea
Azalea (pronounced uh-ZAY-lee-uh) flowers are sometimes purple. The (obsolete) genus name Azalea is derived from the Ancient Greek word azaleos, meaning “dry.” Here’s the popularity graph for Azalea.

Banafsha
Banafsha is a Persian feminine name meaning “violet.”

Betony
Betony flowers are usually purple. “Betony” is the common name of plants in the genus Stachys. Here’s the popularity graph for Betony.

Bíbor
Bíbor (pronounced BEE-bor) is a Hungarian masculine name based on the word bíbor, meaning “purple.”

Bíborka
Bíborka is a feminine form of Bíbor.

Bora
Bora is a Korean feminine name meaning “purple.” (Though the name has appeared in the U.S. data, this probably reflects the usage of the identical Albanian name, which means “snow.”) Here’s the popularity graph for Bora.

Fjóla
Fjóla (pronounced FYOH-lah) is an Icelandic and Faroese feminine name meaning “violet.”

Fjólar
Fjólar is the masculine form of Fjóla.

Giacinta and Giacinto
Giacinta (feminine) and Giacinto (masculine) are the Italian forms of Hyacinth. Here’s the popularity graph for Giacinto.

Gladiola
Gladiola refers to Gladiolus, a genus of plants with flowers that are sometimes purple. The genus name, meaning “little sword” (a diminutive of the Latin word gladius, “sword”) refers to the shape of the leaves. Here’s the popularity graph for Gladiola.

Haze
Haze (besides being a vocabulary word) is part of “Purple Haze” [vid] — the title of the song by Jimi Hendrix. “Purple Haze” was the opening track of the iconic album Are You Experienced (1967). Here’s the popularity graph for Haze.

Heather
Heather flowers are usually purple. “Heather” is the common name of plants in the genus Calluna. Here’s the popularity graph for Heather.

Honesty
Honesty (besides being a vocabulary word) is the common name of the plant species Lunaria annua, which has flowers that are frequently purple. The common name is likely a reference to the translucence of the seed pods. Here’s the popularity graph for Honesty.

Hyacinth
Hyacinth flowers are often purple. The genus Hyacinthus was named for the plant’s association with the myth of Hyacinthus (who was one of the lovers of Apollo in Greek mythology). Here’s the popularity graph for Hyacinth.

Iantha
Iantha is a variant of Ianthe. Here’s the popularity graph for Iantha.

Ianthe
Ianthe, which means “violet flower,” is derived from a combination of the Ancient Greek words ion, meaning “violet,” and anthos, meaning “flower.” Here’s the popularity graph for Ianthe.

Ibolya
Ibolya is a Hungarian form of Viola.

Iola
Iola is a variant of Iole. Here’s the popularity graph for Iola.

Iolanda
Iolanda is the Portuguese and Italian form of Yolanda. Here’s the popularity graph for Iolanda.

Iolanthe
Iolanthe may be a variant of Yolanda influenced by the name Ianthe.

Iole
Iole (pronounced IE-oh-lee) is based on the Ancient Greek word ion, meaning “violet.” In Greek myth, Iole was one of Heracles’ many objects of desire. Here’s the popularity graph for Iole.

Iona
Iona could be considered a variant of Ione, though more often it’s a reference to the Scottish island of Iona. Here’s the popularity graph for Iona.

Ione
Ione (pronounced ie-OH-nee) is also based on the Ancient Greek word ion, meaning “violet.” Here’s the popularity graph for Ione.

Iris
The word iris can refer to several things, including flowering plants of the genus Iris, the name of which comes from the Ancient Greek word for “rainbow.” The showy blooms of these plants come in a variety of colors (as the name suggests), though we often think of irises as being shades of purple. For instance, did you know that all of the irises in Vincent van Gogh’s various paintings were once purple? His irises now appear blue only because the red pigment he used to create the purple has faded over time. Here’s the popularity graph for Iris.

Jacaranda
Jacaranda flowers are purple. The genus name Jacaranda is derived from a Tupi-Guarani word meaning “fragrant.”

Jacinta and Jacinto
Jacinta (feminine) and Jacinto (masculine) are the Spanish and Portuguese forms of Hyacinth. Here are the popularity graphs for Jacinta and Jacinto.

Jolanda
Jolanda (pronounced yoh-LAHN-dah) is the Dutch form of Yolanda. Here’s the popularity graph for Jolanda.

Lavender
Lavender flowers are typically purple. “Lavender” is the common name of plants in the genus Lavandula. The genus name is derived from the Latin word lividus, meaning “bluish,” and/or the Latin word lavare, meaning “to wash” (due to aromatic lavender being used in washing and bathing). Here’s the popularity graph for Lavender.

Liila
Liila is the Finnish form of Lilac.

Lila
Lila is the Swedish form of Lilac, though the name also has other possible meanings (e.g., “play” in Sanskrit, “night” in Arabic). Here’s the popularity graph for Lila.

Lilac
Lilac flowers are frequently purple. “Lilac” is the common name of plants in the genus Syringa. Here’s the popularity graph for Lilac.

Lupine
Lupine flowers are often purple. The genus name Lupinus is derived from the Latin word lupinus, meaning “wolfish” (from lupus, “wolf”). Here’s the popularity graph for Lupine.

Magenta
Magenta is a reddish-purple color. A French chemist first synthesized magenta-colored dye in the late 1850s, and the color was eventually named “Magenta” in honor of the French-Sardinian victory at the Battle of Magenta (1859). Here’s the popularity graph for Magenta.

Malva
Malva flowers are commonly purple. The genus name Malva comes from the Latin word for the plant, malva.

Murasaki
Murasaki is a Japanese feminine name meaning “purple.” Originally it referred to the gromwell plant, the root of which was used to make purple dye.

Orchid
Orchid flowers are sometimes purple. Orchids are all members of the Orchidaceae family of plants. Here’s the popularity graph for Orchid.

Phoenix
Phoenix refers to the mythical bird, but the name of that bird was based on the Ancient Greek word phoinix, meaning “purple” or “crimson.” Here’s the popularity graph for Phoenix.

Plum
Plum fruits are commonly purple. Plum trees are part of the genus Prunus. Here’s the popularity graph for Plum.

Porfiria and Porfirio
Porfiria (feminine) and Porfirio (masculine) are the modern Spanish forms of Porphyrius. Here are the popularity graphs for Porfiria and Porfirio.

Porfiriy
Porfiriy is the modern Russian masculine form of Porphyrius.

Porphyrios
Porphyrios was an Ancient Greek name derived from the word porphyra, meaning “purple dye, purple.”

Porphyrius
Porphyrius is the Latinized form of Porphyrios.

Purple
Purple, which can also be traced back to the ancient Greek word porphyra, is rarely used as a given name…though I did spot a girl named Purple in Los Angeles’ baby name data a few years back.

rebeccapurple

Rebecca
Rebecca is part of “rebeccapurple” — the name of the shade of purple with the hex value #663399. The color name pays tribute to Rebecca Meyer, the daughter of web design pioneer Eric Meyer. Rebecca, whose favorite color was purple, passed away on her 6th birthday (in mid-2014). The biblical name Rebecca is ultimately derived from the Semitic root r-b-q, meaning “to tie” or “to secure.” Here’s the popularity graph for Rebecca.

Sigalit
Sigalit is a Hebrew feminine name meaning “violet.”

Sumire
Sumire (pronounced soo-mee-reh) is a Japanese name that can mean “violet,” depending upon the kanji being used to write the name. Here’s the popularity graph for Sumire.

Temenuzhka
Temenuzhka is a Bulgarian feminine name meaning “violet.”

Thistle
Thistle flowers are usually purple. “Thistle” is the common name of various prickly plants, most of which are in the Asteraceae family. Here’s the popularity graph for Thistle.

Twila
Twila may be based on the English word “twilight.” During twilight, the sky can turn various shades of purple. Here’s the popularity graph for Twila.

Twyla
Twyla is a variant of Twila. Here’s the popularity graph for Twyla.

Tyrian
Tyrian (pronounced TEE-ree-uhn) is part of “Tyrian purple” — the name of the expensive purple dye used during ancient times that I mentioned earlier. The source of the dye was a type of sea snail found in the Mediterranean, near the city of Tyre (now part of Lebanon). The city name can be traced back to the Hebrew word tsor, meaning “rock,” as the settlement was originally built upon a rocky formation. Here’s the popularity graph for Tyrian.

Verbena
Verbena flowers are sometimes purple. The genus name Verbena is derived from the Latin word verbena, which referred to the leaves, twigs, and branches of specific plants (like laurel, olive, and myrtle) that were used during religious ceremonies. Here’s the popularity graph for Verbena.

Vernonia
Vernonia flowers are typically purple. The genus Vernonia was named in honor of English botanist William Vernon.

Viola
Viola is based on the Latin word viola, meaning “violet.” In fact, the genus Viola includes many (though not all) violet flowers. Here’s the popularity graph for Viola.

Violanda
Violanda is another elaboration of Viola. Here’s the popularity graph for Violanda.

Violet
The word violet refers to any flowering plant of the genus Viola — particularly the fragrant species Viola odorata — or to any similar-looking flowering plant. By extension, it also refers to the bluish-purple color of these flowers. Here’s the popularity graph for Violet.

Violeta
The name Violeta is a form of Violet used in Spanish, Romanian, Serbian, Bulgarian, and other languages. Here’s the popularity graph for Violeta.

Violett
Violett is a variant of Violet. Here’s the popularity graph for Violett.

Violetta
Violetta is an Italian and Hungarian form of Violet. Here’s the popularity graph for Violetta.

Violette
The name Violette is a form of Violet used in French. Here’s the popularity graph for Violette.

Violia
Violia is an elaboration of Viola. Here’s the popularity graph for Violia.

Viorica
Viorica is a Romanian form of Viola.

Wisteria
Wisteria (pronounced wuh-STEE-ree-uh) flowers are frequently light purple. The genus Wisteria was named in honor of American physician and anatomist Caspar Wistar. Here’s the popularity graph for Wisteria.

Yolanda
Yolanda may have been derived from the medieval European feminine name Violante, which was based on the Latin word viola, “violet.” Here’s the popularity graph for Yolanda.

Yolande
Yolande is the French form of Yolanda. Here’s the popularity graph for Yolande.

Yukari
Yukari is a Japanese feminine name that can mean “purple,” depending upon the kanji being used to write the name. Here’s the popularity graph for Yukari.

Yukariko
Yukariko is a Japanese name that can include the element Yukari.

Zi
Zi (third tone) is a Chinese name that can mean “purple,” depending upon the character being used to write the name. Here’s the popularity graph for Zi.

Ziming
Ziming is a Chinese name that can include the element Zi.

Ziyang
Ziyang is another Chinese name that can include the element Zi. Here’s the popularity graph for Ziyang.

Zinnia
Zinnia flowers are sometimes purple. The genus Zinnia was named in honor of German botanist Johann Gottfried Zinn. Here’s the popularity graph for Zinnia.

Can you think of any other names that have a connection to the color purple?

P.S. Want to see more color-related baby names? Here are lists of red, orange, yellow, green, and blue names.

Sources:

Images:

[Latest update: Dec. 2023]

Popular and unique baby names in Iowa, 2016

Flag of Iowa
Flag of Iowa

I love that the Social Security Administration releases so much baby name data to the public. But I’ve always had mixed feelings about that 5-baby threshold for inclusion. (Due to privacy concerns, the government doesn’t release names given to fewer than 5 babies per gender, per year.)

Part of me appreciates the threshold. For instance, I like that it adds significance to the pop culture-inspired debut names I’m always posting about, as these names had to hit a certain minimum level of usage in order to register in the data.

But the other part of me? The other part just really, really wants to see those rare/crazy names at the bottom of the list.

So I get excited when I find U.S. data from an official source that does go down to single-instance usage. Up until recently, I only knew about Sonoma County and Los Angeles County, but recently I discovered that Iowa (an entire state!) also releases down-to-1 baby name data. Yay!

But before we get to the rare names, let’s look at the state of Iowa’s top baby names of 2016:

Girl Names
1. Olivia, 203 baby girls
2. Emma, 181
3. Charlotte, 158
4. Harper, 156
5. Ava & Evelyn, 148 each (2-way tie)
6. Amelia, 125
7. Nora, 123
8. Sophia, 112
9. Addison, 101
10. Grace, 96

Boy Names
1. Oliver, 197 baby boys
2. Owen, 178
3. William, 174
4. Wyatt, 170
5. Henry, 165
6. Liam, 159
7. Noah, 149
8. Benjamin, 148
9. Jackson, 144
10. Lincoln, 123

  • In the girls’ top 10, Addison and Grace replaced Avery.
  • In the boys’ top 10, Benjamin and Lincoln replaced Mason and Elijah.
  • In 2015, the top two names were Emma and Liam.

(The SSA rankings for Iowa are similar, but not exactly the same. One notable difference on is that the SSA ranks Grayson 10th on the boys list, and puts Lincoln down in 13th.)

And now for the rarities!

Iowa’s website offers interactive baby name usage graphs that include all names bestowed at least once from 2000 to 2016. Here’s a sampling of rare baby names in Iowa (2000-2016 usage):

Girl NamesBoy Names
Arabia (1)
Bishop (1)
Currency (1)
Dream (3)
Eros (1)
Fairy (1)
Gatsby (1)
Heritage (1)
Irish (5)
Jasper (1)
KeyEssence (1)
Lisbon (1)
Michigan (1)
Nirvana (3)
Orchid (1)
PairoDice (1)
Qy (1)
Reminisce (1)
Scully (1)
Tear (1)
Unity (4)
Veruca (1)
Windy (2)
Xanadu (1)
Yawh (1)
Zinnia (1)		Arcade (1)
Banksy (1)
Cactus (1)
Denali (2)
Elvis (18)
Fonzy (1)
Galaxy (1)
Helium (1)
Indigo (2)
Jeep (3)
Kal-El (3)
Lightning (1)
Mowgli (1)
Notorious (1)
Opttimus (1)
Player (1)
Quest (3)
Racer (3)
Sanctify (1)
Tavern (1)
Universe (1)
Vegas (1)
Winner (4)
Xyn (1)
Young-Sky (1)
Zealand (1)

If you decide to dig through the data, leave a comment and let me know what you spot!

And if you’re friends with any expectant parents in Iowa, tell those lucky ducks that they have access to full sets of baby name rankings for their state. Either send them a link to this post or to one of the pages below…

Sources: Top Baby Names – Iowa Department of Public Health, Baby Names Popularity Over Time – Iowa Department of Public Health

Image: Adapted from Flag of Iowa (public domain)

Do you name your orchids?

My husband and I went to a baseball game on Friday night, and one of the women sitting behind us spent time talking with her friends about the orchid in her office. And you know what? That orchid had a name: Octavia. The woman went on to say that she knew of another office orchid with a name (Desdemona) and that she thought all orchids deserved names because they’re so hard to take care of.

(I swear I’m not a creepy eavesdropper. I couldn’t help but overhear this stuff.)

Giving names to plants is nothing new, but her last point made me wonder if people are more likely to give names to finicky orchids than to plants that don’t take as much effort to grow.

Have you been introduced to any named orchids lately? More importantly, what name would you give an orchid?

P.S. In terms of baby names, both Orchid and the Spanish version Orquidea remain rare in the U.S. The fact that they stem from the Greek word for “testicle” (orkhis) could have something do with it.

P.P.S. The man-eating plant named Audrey in The Little Shop of Horrors may have been inspired by a man-eating orchid from a 1950s Arthur C. Clarke story, which in turn may have been inspired by an man-eating orchid from a 1890s H.G. Wells story. Disappointingly, neither of these two carnivorous orchids had names.