Vanessa

Vanessa is a traditionally feminine name with all sorts of mythological roots. In Latin it can mean "of Venus," the god of love; in Greek, however, it's a reference to the mystic goddess Phanessa, who is Pandora's daughter and bore a fascination for butterflies. (Vanessa has also been said to mean "butterfly" and is also the name of a specific butterfly genus.)

The first incidence of the name Vanessa was as a nickname invented by author Jonathan Swift in 1713 for his poem 'Cadenus and Vanessa.' The character of Vanessa was supposedly named for Swift's own lover, Esther Vanhomrigh ('Van' from her last name and 'Es' from her first).

Famous Vanessas include Vanessa Redgrave, Vanessa Hudgens, Vanessa Paradis, Vanessa Carlton, Vanessa Amorosi, VV Brown, Vanessa Lachey, and Vanessa Bell (artist and sister of Virginia Woolf — if you're looking to name your own epic Virginia-Vanessa sister pair).

The name peaked in popularity in 1985, with nearly 4.5K babies per million being named Vanessa that year. Because of its '80s swag, fans of the name may also like: Tiffany, Ashley, Jessica, Veronica, Nicole, Stephanie, Crystal and Valerie. Or try more classic-contemporary related names like Amelia, Ava, Alexis, Alice, Aseda, Charlotte, Emma, Isabella, Gabriella, Mia, Sophia, Vivian, or Victoria. Vanessa also sounds great with double-S sister names like Cassandra, Melissa, Alessandra, even Essie.

Vanessa in quotes:

"Just being alive, staying human, I think that's infinitely precious." — Vanessa Redgrave

"If people don't like me for whatever I do, for being me, then that's too bad. I don't want to change to be something that I'm not for other people to like me." — Vanessa Hudgens