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Old Fashioned English Baby Names For Girls

Published: Nov 11, 2016 · Modified: Feb 16, 2025 by Alice · This post may contain affiliate links · 1 Comment

Rare Old Fashioned Girls Names
Rare Old English Girls Names
Old Fashioned Baby Names For Girls
Old Fashioned Baby Names For Girls
Little girl with headband smiling
Girl dressed as ballerina
Old fashioned girl looking up
Old fashioned girl holding flowers
Girl in dress on a swing
Rare Old Baby Names For Girls
Young girl wearing a flowered dress and holding a flower
Rare Old Fashioned Baby Names For Girls

There are many beautiful old English baby names for girls but they've been so popular recently it's hard to find an old fashioned name that's truly unique.

However, there are some unbelievably lovely old British and English girl's names that really are rare and ripe for re-discovery.

So if you want a gorgeous old fashioned English name for your baby girl that is genuinely different have a browse of this list.

You'll find forgotten gems Victorians loved but also long lost beauties from Medieval times and even earlier in British history.

Use the index below to find old English girls names from a specific period in history or browse the alphabetic list.

I hope you find something you love. Let me know your favourites.

And do bookmark or save on Pinterest for quick reference later.

Old English Girls Name Index

Uncommon Old English Girls Names

Simply click the links in the index to read more about the meanings, origins and diminutives of these lovely old girls names :

  1. Victorian Girls Names
  2. Edwardian Girls Names
  3. Medieval Girls Names
  4. Anglo Saxon Girls Names
  5. Old British Girls Names

Victorian English Girls Names

Many old English girls names from the Victorian or gilded age are super popular now but there are still uncommon and rare Victorian names to choose from including :

  • Adelia
  • Adelina
  • Anora
  • Bliss
  • Clementine
  • Edwina
  • Ellen
  • Lettice - Letitia
  • Orelia - Orella

The Victorians adored everything Anglo-Saxon and revived these old English girls name from one thousand years earlier :

  • Edith
  • Edna - Edina
  • Elvina
  • Freda
  • Hilda
  • Mildred
  • Winifred

Edwardian English Girls Names

The Edwardians in the early 20th century revived old medieval English girls name and borrowed new ones from the French :

  • Audrey
  • Blanche
  • Clarice
  • Esme
  • Mabel
  • Maude
  • Odette
  • Ottolie
  • Ottoline

Medieval English Girls Names

There was a big change in English girls name after the Norman conquest with French names becoming most fashionable. Some of these old names have been revived but others are still beautifully rare :

  • Adela
  • Alodia
  • Annis - Annice
  • Avella
  • Aveline
  • Cecily
  • Eleanor
  • Elspeth
  • Felicia
  • Joan
  • Marjorie
  • Matilda
  • Sibley
  • Sybil - Sybilla

Uncommon Anglo Saxon Girls Names

As we have seen the Victorians revived lots of old Anglo Saxon girls names and made them super popular but these beautifully rare old English names escaped their attention and are wonderfully unique now :

  • Aisley
  • Alwyn
  • Elfwen
  • Elswith
  • Elwyna
  • Everilda
  • Ewynn
  • Merewen
  • Sidwell - Sidwella
  • Wynflaed

Rare Old British Girls Names

There are some very pretty but rare old British girls names that go back before the Anglo-Saxons to Roman and Celtic Britain and give you a choice of something unusual but traditional for your daughter :

  • Afrella
  • Aurelia
  • Arilda
  • Cwen
  • Elda
  • Enid
  • Fearn
  • Lewina
  • Linnet
  • Nelda
  • Odilia - Odelia - Odella
  • Ora
  • Rowena

Beautifully Rare And Uncommon Old English Girls Names

Adela

Meaning : Noble, Serene

Adela was a popular medieval girl's name in England after Princess Adela the daughter of King William I and the mother of King Stephen. Diminutives: Addie, Della

Adelia

Meaning : Noble One

Adelia is a lovely rare alternative to the ever popular Amelia. It had a burst of popularity in the 19th Century after Donizetti's opera Adelia. Diminutives : Addie, Delia

Adelaide

Meaning : Noble

Popular in the early 19th Century in Britain after the coronation of Queen Adelaide in 1830 after whom the Australian city Adelaide was named. Diminutives : Addie, Della

Adeline or Adelina

Meaning : Noble

Old Fashioned English Girls Names - Adeline

Adeline and Adelina first became popular in Wales in the 18th Century but really took off across the British Isles in the 1830s. Adeline, Countess of Cardigan was a famous British society beauty in the 1850s. Diminutives : Addie, Lina

Afrella

Meaning : Pure

Afrella was an early British princess back in the 5th Century and the name has not had a revival since!! So if you want a beautiful but truly unique old British name for your baby girl, Afrella is a great choice. Diminutives : Frella, Affie

Agatha

Meaning : Good & honourable

Rare Old English Girls Names

Agatha has been a girl's name in Britain since Saint Agatha right back in Roman times. Popular with medieval aristocrats, it came back into fashion in the 1880s. Diminutives: Aggie

Aisley

Meaning : An ash tree meadow

Aisley is a pretty Anglo-Saxon version of the more well known name Ashley. It pops up in British and American records back to the 16th Century but is still delightfully rare. Diminutives : Ley

Alodia

Meaning : Other riches

Alodia is an old English version of the French girl's name Alodie. It had a little wave of popularity in the 1600s but has been forgotten since so is a pretty name ripe for a revival. Diminutives : Ally, Loddie

Alys - Alyse - Alyce

Meaning : Exalted

Alys, Alyse and Alyce are old English spellings of Alice and a lovely way to give an unusual twist to a popular girls name. Diminutives : Allie

Elsweth - Elswith - Aelswith

Meaning : Spiritual Strength

Elsweth is a rare old version of the name Elizabeth. The most famous Aelswith was wife of King Alfred the Great and now a star of Last Kingdom. Diminutives : Ellie

Alyssum

Meaning : Worth Beyond Beauty

Old English Girls Names From Flowers

Sweet Alyssum is the old name for the pretty little pink & white flower sweet Alison and makes a lovely unusual alternative to the more common Alison. Diminutives : Allie

Alwyn

Meaning : Joyful spirit

Alwyn was popular old English girl's name in Anglo-Saxon times but didn't come back with the Victorians so makes a beautifully unique choice today. Diminutives : Allie

Annis - Annes - Annice

Meaning : Pure

Annis or Annice was a traditionally popular girl's name in England and other parts of Britain that had faded away but is now having a revival. Diminutives : Annie

Anora

Meaning : Honour

Anora is a sweet version of the girl's names Onora and Honora that became very popular in Britain and Ireland in the 19th Century. Diminutives : Annie

Arilda

Meaning : Pure

Arilda was the name of one of the first old English saints. Long forgotten, it was revived by the Victorians who adored Anglo-Saxon names. Diminutives : Rillie, Rilda

Audra - Audrey

Meaning : Steadfast honour

Old English Girls Names - Audrey

Audra is an old fashioned version of the English name Audrey first popularised by pre-WW1 model Audrey Munson and then by Audrey Hepburn. Both were nicknames for Princess Etheldreda an old British saint.

Aurelia

Meaning : Golden one

Aurelia has Latin origins but became fashionable in England during the Renaissance as a feminine version of Aurelius. Diminutives : Relia

Avella - Aveline

Meaning : Hazel

Aveline was originally a French girl's name derived from Avella the pretty Italian name for Hazel but Aveline became fashionable in both Tudor and late Victorian Britain. Diminutives : Vella, Lina

Blanche

Meaning : Pure

Old British Girls Names - Blanche

Blanche is another old British girls name originating in France that was popular with medieval aristocrats and then had a big revival in Britain & America in the gilded age with fashionable stars such as Blanche Sweet. Diminutives : Bee, Annie

Bliss - Blisse

Meaning : Blessed, Grace

The origins of the word Bliss are found in old English in the Kingdom of Northumbria but Bliss and Blisse only took off as English girls name with the Victorians.

Cecily - Secily

Meaning : For St Cecilia

Cecily is an English version of Cecilia, popular amongst the aristocracy of Medieval England such as Cecily of York mother of King Edward IV.

Cicely - Cicily

Meaning : Spirit lifting

The beautiful old fashioned name Cicely comes from the flowering herb Sweet Cicely which was found in old English gardens and was believed to lift spirits and bring joy.

Clarice - Clarisse - Clarissa

Meaning : Clear and bright

Clarice is an English version of the traditional French and Italian girls names Clarisse and Clarissa. Clarice became popular in the 1890s. Diminutives : Clarrie.

Clementine

Meaning : Gentle one

Old British Girls Names - Clementine

Clementine has been an English girls name since at least the 1500s but hit peak popularity in Britain in the Victorian era influenced by Princess Clementine of France. Diminutives: Clemmie, Clem.

Cwen

Meaning : Queen

Cwen is a very old British girl's name with roots in the old Welsh spoken in Roman Britain before the Anglo-Saxons arrived in the British Isles. Diminutives : Cwennie

Daisy

Meaning : The day's eye

A beloved old English girl's name since the Anglo-Saxons, Daisy never truly goes out of fashion and is a lovely simple girl's name to combine with something more unusual.

Eawynn - Ewynn

Meaning : River, joy

Ewynn is another old English name popular in Anglo-Saxon times that missed the Victorian revival so a lovely choice for a rare old name. Diminutive : Winnie

Edith

Meaning : To prosper

Old English Girls Names - Edith

Edith is an ancient Anglo-Saxon name that never truly went out of fashion in England but became super popular with the Victorians. Famous Ediths include Queen Edith of Wessex, novelist Edith Wharton and silent movie stars Edith Roberts and Edith Johnson. Diminutive : Edie, Eddie

Edna - Edina

Meaning : Essence, true heart

Old Fashioned English Names - Edna

Edna and Edina become popular in Victorian Britain as derivations of both the old English name Edwin and the Gaelic name Eithne. Famous Edna's include Edna May a celebrated music hall star. Diminutives : Eddie, Dina

Elfwen - Elfwyn

Meaning : Elf like

Elfwen is a beautifully rare old Anglo-Saxon name which like many old English names pays tribute to the mystical strengths of the elf folk : beauty, wisdom and bravery. Diminutives : Ellie, Wen, Winnie

Elvina - Elwyna

Meaning : Elf friend

Elvina is another lovely old English girl's name that celebrates - curiously to us - the elves. Elvina was still in use in Tudor times and had a Victorian comeback but is now super rare. Diminutives : Ellie, Vina

Elda

Meaning : Protected & protector

Elda is a rare old English name for girls from the West Country. It celebrates a belief in the mythical powers of the elder tree to protect the home. Diminutive : Ellie

Ellen

Meaning : Bright light, protector

Old British Girls Names - Ellen

Ellen is another old fashioned British girls name popular since Saxon times. Ellen Terry was the most famous actress of the 19th Century. Diminutive : Ellie

Enid - Ened

Meaning : Pure life spirit

Enid is a very old British girls name found in Welsh stories of King Arthur that became fashionable in late Victorian and Edwardian times in Britain and the USA.

Everilda

Meaning : For Saint Everilda

The old English girl's name Everilda honours the Anglo-Saxon saint Everilda who established a religious community in Yorkshire. The name was very rare in England as a whole but found in Yorkshire until the Victorians. Diminutives : Evie, Rilda

Esme

Meaning : Beloved

Esme has been popular recently but first came into fashion in Edwardian times. It's another good old fashioned name to combine with something more unusual.

Edwina

Meaning : Fortunate friend

Old English Girls Names - Edwina

Edwina sounds like an old English girls name but is really a Victorian invented feminine version of Edwin. Famous Edwinas include Countess Mountbatten and movie star Edwina Booth. Diminutives : Eddie

Eleanor

Meaning : Shining light

Eleanor has been a popular English baby name for girls ever since the arrival of Queen Eleanor from France in medieval times. Diminutive : Ellie

Elspeth - Elsbeth - Elesabeth

Meaning : God's promise

Elspeth is an old British version of Elizabeth most commonly found in Scotland and Northumberland. Diminutive : Elsie, Beth

Fearn

Meaning : Tree of spring

Fearn is a very old British girl's name which comes from the Gaelic for the Alder tree a symbol of protection and new life for babies born in spring from March 18th to April 14th.

Felicia - Felicity

Meaning : Happy, fortunate

Felicia was a Roman saint and both Felicia and Felicity have been used as girls names since early medieval times. Diminutives : Flick, Flissie

Freda

Meaning : Peaceful

Old English Girls Names - Freda

Freda is an old English girls name fashionable in the gilded era from the 1890s to WW1. Famous Fredas included Freda Dudley Ward the socialite mistress of King Edward VIII who featured in Downton Abbey. Diminutives : Freddie

Hasel - Hazel

Meaning : Wisdom, authority

Hasel or hazel trees had great power in Celtic and Anglo Saxon myths and Hasel has been used as a rare girl's name ever since but became very fashionable in the 1920s and 30s in Britain and America.

Hilda

Meaning : Mother, teacher, leader

The name Hilda was first made popular by Hilda of Whitby a Northumbrian princess and beloved old English saint, but fell out of fashion until the 1880s. Famous Hildas included silent movie stars Hilda Bayley & Hilda Anthony.

Joan

Meaning : Gracious

Old English Girls Names - Joan

Joan became a popular girls name among the medieval nobility with a long line of English princesses called Joan but fell out of fashion in the 1800s until a huge revival in the 1920s & 30s with film stars such as Joan Crawford & Joan Fontaine

Lettice - Letecia - Letitia

Meaning : Joy

Originally a Latin name, Lettice and Letecia were fashionable British girls names from the 17th to the 19th centuries but fell out of fashion after WW1 so a good choice if you want something rare. Diminutive : Lettie

Lewina

Meaning : Serenity

Lewina was one of the very earliest British saints associated by tradition with many miracles. Lewina never completely disappeared from records of English and Welsh girls names but now makes a beautifully rare choice for your baby daughter. Diminutive : Lina

Linnet - Linetta

Meaning : Of the lake, Small bird

Linnet is an old British girls name with Celtic origins that can be found continuously in birth records but has always remained delightfully unusual. Diminutives : Lin, Nettie

Mabel

Meaning : Adorable

Uncommon Old English Girls Names - Mabel

The girl's name Mabel came to England from France with Norman nobility. It became super popular and glamorous - think Mabel Lane Fox from Downton Abbey - in Edwardian England and Gilded Age America with early silent film stars such as Mabel Poulton, Ballin and Taliaferro.

Maerwynn - Merewen

Meaning : Fair light

Merewen is another popular Anglo-Saxon girls name - after Maerwynn who founded a great seat of learning at Romsey Abbey - that is now long forgotten. It is obviously an unusual choice but it does have - the ever safe - Mary as a diminutive.

Marigold

Meaning : Mary's gold / splendour

If you love Downton Abbey you could opt - like Edith - for Marigold a traditional flower in English gardens.

Margery - Marjory - Marjorie

Meaning : Pearl

Old British Girls Names - Marjorie

Marjorie is another old British girls name that came over with the Normans. It became common in Scotland in honour of Marjorie Countess of Carrick mother of King Robert the Bruce and then super fashionable in England and the USA in 1890s and early 1900s with silent movie stars such as Marjorie Daw.

Matilda - Mathilda

Meaning : Strength

Matilda was very popular amongst medieval English nobility with numerous Queen Matildas in both England and Scotland after the Norman Conquest. It was super fashionable again with the early Victorians. Diminutive : Tilda, Tilly

Maud - Maude

Meaning : Strength

Old Fashioned English Girls Names - Maud

Maud is a variation of Mathilda that became popular after the birth of Princess Maud of Wales in 1869. The name fell out of fashion but in 2013 the Royal family welcomed a new Maud Windsor.

Mildred - Mildrith

Meaning : Gentle Strength

Old English Girls Names - Mildred

Mildred is an old British girls name that goes back to the Anglo-Saxon princess Saint Mildred. It had a big revival in Edwardian times led by stage and silent movie stars such as Mildred Davies and Mildred Harris. Diminutive : Milly, Millie

Molly

Meaning : Beloved

A diminutive of Mary, Molly had big wave of popularity in Britain in the 1700s and has been having a comeback since the 1990s. It is a lovely old-fashioned British girls name to combine with something more unusual.

Nelda

Meaning : Protected, new spring

Nelda is another old British girl's name tied to the mystical powers of the Alder tree as a symbol of protection and new life in spring so is a wonderful old-fashioned name for babies born in March and April. Curiously super popular in Texas in the 1930s. Diminutive : Nellie

Odilia - Odelia - Odella

Meaning : Fortune, beautiful song

A lovely and very rare name Odilia was a British princess back in the 500s who became a beloved Saint in France. Diminutives : Dillie, Delia, Della

Odette

Meaning : Fortune

Old Fashioned British Girls Names

Odette is more common as a girl's name in France but you can find it in English baptism records back to the Tudors and beyond. Diminutives : Dettie

Orelia - Orella

Meaning : Golden one

Orelia and Orella were Victorian adaptations of the old Tudor favourite Aurelia. Diminutives : Relia, Rella

Ottilie - Ottoline

Meaning : Prosper

Ottolie and Ottoline are feminine versions of Otto that were super popular in Denmark in the 19th Century but came to Britain in the late 1800s with Queen Alexandra and everything Danish. Diminutives : Ottie

Ora

Meaning : Golden, prayer

Uncommon Old English Girls Names

Ora is a rare British girls name but can be found in old birth records going back hundreds of years.

Oakley

Meaning : Growing strength

Oakley is an old English surname that makes a beautifully rare, nature inspired baby name that works wonderfully for girls and boys. Diminutives : Ley

Rowena

Meaning : Protecting

Rowena was the Anglo-Saxon heroine of Walter Scott's popular novel Ivanhoe. The name came from the rowan tree which had magical protective powers in British myths. Diminutives : Rena

Steorra

Meaning : Star, Shining Light

Steorra is an old English word for star or bright guiding light.

Sidwell - Sidwella

Meaning : Virtuous one

Old English Names For A Girl

Sidwell is the patron saint of Exeter - remembered for her kindness to the poor - and Sidwell and Sidwella were used as girls name in Devon and Cornwall right up until the 20th century. Diminutives : Sid

Sybil - Sybilla - Sibilla

Meaning : Prophetess, blessed sight

The name Sybil goes back to the Greeks but was popular in the British royal families after the Norman Conquest with many medieval princesses called Sybilla including Queen Sybilla of Scotland. Diminutive : Sybbie

Sibley

Meaning: Blessed sight

Sibley is believed to be a shortened version of Sybilla and can be found in old English birth records from medieval times and the Tudors right through to the Victorians. Diminutive : Sibbie

Winifred - Winefride

Meaning : Peaceful friend

Winefride was a Welsh saint in the 600s who became a favourite for English pilgrims and Winifred was a popular English girls name right up until WW1 when it fell out of fashion. It is just starting to comeback so a good old British girls name that is still unusual but on trend. Diminutives : Winnie, Freddie

Wynflaed

Meaning : Joy, beauty

If you'd like a really unique old English girls name, Wynflaed is an alternative to Winifred that was used by Anglo-Saxon noble women. Diminutives : Winnie

Return to index.

I do hope you found some beautiful uncommon old english girls names you love for your baby.

Do bookmark or save on Pinterest to come back to.

And for more ideas and simple pregnancy tips check out my other baby & pregnancy posts and follow me on Pinterest.

Original image sources under creative commons : 1 2 3

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Rare Old Fashioned Girls Names
Rare Old English Girls Names
Old Fashioned Baby Names For Girls
Old Fashioned Baby Names For Girls
Little girl with headband smiling
Girl dressed as ballerina
Old fashioned girl looking up
Old fashioned girl holding flowers
Girl in dress on a swing
Rare Old Baby Names For Girls
Young girl wearing a flowered dress and holding a flower
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