Ophelia

Ophelia is a beautiful baby name for girls that has a long history of literary credibility, thanks to one William Shakespeare. The heartbreaking heroine from “Hamlet” is perhaps the most common association with the name Ophelia, but it stems from the Greek word “ophelos” and means "benefit" or “help” or “aid.” A variation is Ofelia.

Despite its tragic-heroine association, Ophelia has been a popular baby name choice for girls since the 1800s, and earning a solid place on the Social Security Administration’s Top 1000 baby names list from 1900 (when it ranked 268) to 1958 (when it was 887). After a decades-long departure, it returned to the list in 2015 — squeaking into the top 1000 at 979 — and has gained favor ever since, climbing up to 272 in 2022.

Beyond its literary history — in addition to Shakespeare, Harriet Beecher Stowe also chose the name Ophelia for one of her characters in “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” — it’s been an inspiration to many musical artists. “Ophelia” is the title of a song by singers including Natalie Merchant and Tori Amos, as well as bands The Band and The Lumineers, whose 2016 hit “Ophelia” no doubt helped launch the name back into the baby name lexicon. And continuing its rock-star cred: Ophelia is also the given name of one of rocker Dave Grohl’s daughters.