Blue: It’s predicted to be one of the hottest hues of the year. Paint companies Sherwin-Williams, Valspar, Krylon, Benjamin Moore, and Minwax — just to name a few — have all designated blue shades as their top picks of 2024. Stylecasterhas declared powder blue and “almost navy” to be “the most popular pops of color you’ll see in 2024.” So since the beloved hue is virtually dominating fashion and interior design, why shouldn’t baby names inspired by the color blue be on your radar too?
After all, there are many reasons to give your little one a blue-inspired baby name. Blue is often associated with peace, calmness, serenity, and trust. It evokes feelings of tranquility and open space, like gazing at a wide-open ocean. It’s diverse; from the light cerulean of a summer sky to the deep sapphire of the ocean, blue offers a wide spectrum of hues with distinct personalities. Unlike green, which is the dominant color in nature, true blue pigments are relatively scarce, making blue objects like certain flowers or minerals stand out as precious. Studies suggest that blue can boost creativity, lower stress, and promote feelings of security, and it holds symbolic meanings across cultures; in China, blue represents immortality, while in Judaism it represents spirituality. And when an American bride has “something blue” on her wedding day, it’s said to represent love and fidelity.
These sweet baby names are inspired by the wind, air, and sky — see this unique list! https://t.co/mSQoNmFJFS
— SheKnows (@SheKnows) December 27, 2023
The color blue isn’t just aesthetically pleasing; it’s woven into our cultural fabric, our rarest of natural wonders, even our psychological well-being. So when you choose one of these blue-inspired baby names, you’re choosing a name with depth and history and symbolism. Not only that, but these names are sure to be a standout; some are poised to become super-popular and others are all but unheard-of.
Here, we’ve put together a list of some of the most beautiful baby names inspired by the color blue.
Indigo
Indigo blue is a deep, rich, and beautiful color that falls somewhere between blue and violet on the color spectrum. The name “indigo” comes from the Latin word indicum, which means “from India.” Indigo dye was originally extracted from the leaves of the indigo plant, which is native to India and Southeast Asia. It was used for centuries to dye textiles, and it was even considered to be a valuable commodity. As a name, it is becoming more widely used, recently entering the U.S. Social Security Administration’s top 1000 most popular baby names for the very first time.
Cyan
Imagine a bright, vibrant blend of green and blue, like the clear waters of a tropical lagoon or the turquoise glow of an exotic bird’s feather. That’s cyan! It can be pronounced either SIGH-an (similar to Ryan) or see-AHN — either is considered correct, but the first pronunciation is more popular in the U.S.
Azure
Azure refers to a bright, light-to-medium blue color, often described as the color of a clear sunny sky. It sits between blue and cyan on the color spectrum, similar to turquoise, but slightly less green. It’s considered a cool, calming, and refreshing shade, and is pronounced AH-zhur (with the last syllable sounding like the last syllable in “closure”).
Sapphire
Like your baby, a sapphire is a precious gem! It’s known for its deep, rich, and vibrant blue color, often purer and more saturated than other blue shades. Think of the color spectrum from navy blue to royal blue, with the core essence of a rich, jewel-like blue. Sapphire is associated with luxury, royalty, wisdom, and trust, and evokes feelings of elegance, mystery, and depth.
Jacinda
This gorgeous name comes from the Greek Hyakinthos, which is the name for the equally-beautiful hyacinth flower. The most prominent color for the hyacinth’s blooms falls into a range of light to medium blue hues, which tend to be soft, delicate, and sweet, often with a hint of purple or violet. Jacinda is a spinoff of Jacinta, which is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the word hyacinth — but given the popularity of nature names lately, you could just use Hyacinth itself as the name!
Aoki
Aoki is a Japanese surname that can be used as an exotic first name; it’s comprised of ao, meaning “blue,” and ki, meaning “tree” or “wood.”
Mina
We’ve already discussed using Azure as a name — but Mina actually means azure in Persian!
Mavi
Most people would never guess that this name means “blue” — unless they speak Turkish, that is! Mavi is actually the Turkish word for blue, but it also makes a distinctive blue-hued name.
Firuzeh
Firuzeh is a gorgeous Persian name that means “turquoise”. It can be spelled in a couple of different ways as well: Firouzeh, with an “O” in the middle, or Fairuza — like actress Fairuza Balk.
Navy
Everyone can recognize the hue of this spirited (and gender-neutral!) color name, but do you know how “navy” came to be? The dark, rich blue was the color of the British Royal Navy’s uniforms in the mid-1700 — so through its association with this branch of the British military, it came to be known as navy blue.
Sinine
In another case of a non-English word making a gloriously perfect name, we present Sinine: the Estonian word for blue. In case you’re wondering, it’s pronounced see-nee-nah.
Livia
At first glance, this name might seem like a spinoff of the super-popular Olivia, which means “olive” — but it’s actually a separate name! Livia is the feminine version of the Roman family name Livius, which comes from the Latin word lividus, meaing … you guessed it … “blue!”
Slate
Picture the weathered tiles of an old roof, or the deep blue-gray of a stormy sky — that’s slate, a moody and sophisticated shade of blue with a noticeable gray tint. The word “slate” comes from the Old Norse word slátr, meaning “flat stone.” Slate is type of rock that’s known for being durable and waterproof enough to make roofs and floor tiles — and has a beautiful color to boot.
Celeste
Fun fact: The brilliant blue color of the sky isn’t actually the color of the air itself, but a result of a phenomenon called Rayleigh scattering. When sunlight reaches Earth’s atmosphere, the shorter blue wavelengths of light are scattered more than the longer orange and red wavelengths. This scattered blue light fills the sky and is what we perceive as sky blue. And while you could obviously use Sky or Skye as a name in homage to this beautiful blue, you could also choose Celeste. It’s the feminine form of the Latin name Caelestis, meaning “of the sky.”
Teal
Teal is a vibrant and refreshing color that bridges the gap between blue and green; it’s neither purely blue nor purely green, but sits comfortably in between, creating a unique and dynamic hue. The color is actually named after the feathers of a type of duck — the teal — who got its name from either the Old German word tela, meaning “flock,” or the Dutch taling, meaning “greenish.”
Melyna
You could argue that this is a variation of the name Melina, which likely stems from the Greek meli, meaning “honey.” But with this exact spelling, when pronounced may-lee-nah, it’s the Lithuanian word for “blue!”
Royal
As its name suggests, royal blue is steeped in regal associations. It evokes feelings of luxury, authority, power, and wisdom. A deep, vivid shade of blue, somewhere between cobalt and azure, it’s not quite as dark as navy blue, but holds a more saturated intensity than sky blue. Some theories suggest the specific shade we know as royal blue might have been created in Britain in the 18th century as part of a competition to design a dye for Queen Charlotte’s coronation robe. As a name, it’s definitely unique — but if people can name their children things like Prince and Saint and Majesty, why not Royal?
Nila
It may rhyme with the uber-popular name Mila — but while Mila currently sits at #19 of the top 1000 most popular baby names, Nila isn’t even on the charts. That makes it a perfect alternative that’s not overused, but still sounds similar enough to feel familiar. It’s a name of Persian origin and means “dark blue” in Sanskrit.
Blue
We’ll cap off this list with possibly the most blue-inspired baby name of them all: just Blue! Truly unisex, this name has gained popularity from its use by celebrity parents (Jay-Z and Beyoncé with daughter Blue Ivy, and Cher and Alicia Silverstone with sons Elijah Blue and Bear Blu, respectively).
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