Noelle

Noelle comes wrapped in candlelight. The French feminine of Noël, itself from the Latin natalis for "birthday" and long since claimed by Christmas, it carries a seasonal shimmer without being confined to December. Two syllables, the final bell-like "elle" giving it a chime. American parents have steadily favored it since the 1960s, and it now rests comfortably in the top 250, often chosen for daughters born near the holidays but just as often simply loved for its sound. Elegant without effort, festive without kitsch, Noelle is a name that arrives already singing.