Cynthia

While its most common nickname, Cindy, has a playful and innocent feel (Cindy Brady and her pigtails, anyone?), Cynthia is decidedly more refined. And why shouldn't it be? After all, it's the name of a moon goddess. In Greek mythology, the moon goddess Artemis and her twin brother Apollo were born on a mountain called Cynthus. So Cynthia — meaning "woman from Cynthus" — was often used as a nickname for Artemis.

But a name as beautiful as Cynthia couldn't be confined to Greek myth. In the Elizabethan period, Cynthia was a favored name among poets and writers (you can see clear evidence of this in Benjamin Jonson's "Cynthia's Revels" and Sir Walter Raleigh's "Ocean, to Cynthia").

In Cynthia's heyday during the 1950s, it was one of the top 10 most popular girl names in the U.S. Though it's still within the top 1000 most popular names, it has seen a decline since then — but with fresh nicknames like Cyncie, Thia, or Tia, we can definitely see this gem beginning to shine again.

Notable Cynthias include actresses Cynthia Nixon, Cynthia Rothrock, and Cynthia Watros; television personality Cynthia Bailey; and Cynthia Lennon, first wife of Beatle John Lennon.

Cynthia in quotes:

"Cynthia, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen." — Henry Higgins in the play 'My Fair Lady'

"Cynthia, you are a force of nature." — Miranda Priestly in the movie 'The Devil Wears Prada'