100 French Female Names: Best Newborn Names From France | WHO (2024)

French names are pretty and unique – just like your baby. So instead of giving your child and old or outdated name, give them a name that’s beautiful, modern, and really reflects who they are. From 3-syllable names to 3-letter names, read on for a hundred of the best French girl baby names you can choose from!

RELATED:

Beautiful French Girl Names For Your Baby

Starting With A

Abella, Adele, Adeline, Agatha, Aimee, Alice, Alison, Amelie, Anais, Antoinette, Audrey

Fun fact: Amelie, starring actress Audrey Tautou, is a French critically-acclaimed, box office hit rom-com. It’s considered one of the best movies ever made by The New York Times, Empire, and BBC Magazine.

Famous namesakes: Agatha Christie, Anais Nin, Audrey Hepburn, Audrey Tautou

Starting With B

Bella, Bernadette, Blaise, Brigitte

Fun fact: The name Bella means ‘beautiful’. You can also use Belle, Isabelle, or Isabella to mean the same thing.

Famous namesakes: Brigitte Bardot, Bella Hadid, Bernadette Peters

Starting With C

Camille, Cecile, Celeste, Celia, Charlotte, Chloe, Clara, Claudette

Fun fact: Cecile was the name of Selma Blair’s character in Cruel Intentions.

Famous namesakes: Charlotte Bronte, Chloe Sevigny, Chloe Grace-Moretz

Starting With D

Danielle, Delphine, Diane, Dominique

Fun fact: ‘Dominique’ is the feminised version of the name ‘Dominic’, which comes from ‘Dominicus’, the Latin word for ‘God’ or ‘the Lord’.

Famous namesakes: Danielle Panabaker, Diane Sawyer

Starting With E

Ella, Elaina, Elodie, Eloise, Esmee, Estelle

Fun fact: One of the most famous Esmees in contemporary pop culture is from the book/film Twilight. Esmee is Edward Cullen’s mum.

Famous namesakes: Ella Fitzgerald, Estelle

Starting With F

Fae, Felicity, Fleur, Floria, Francesca, Francine

Fun fact: Both Fleur and Floria are derived from the Latin word for ‘flower’.

Famous namesakes: Felicity Jone

Starting With G

Gabrielle, Genevieve, Gigi, Giselle

Fun fact: Giselle is an old classic that’s considered one of the greatest masterpieces in ballet. It was written and first performed in France.

Famous namesakes: Gigi Hadid, Gabrielle Union

Starting With H

Harriett, Helene, Holly

Fun fact: Helene (which today is commonly stylised as Helena or simply Helen) is derived from the Ancient Greek name meaning ‘torch’, ‘light’, or ‘bright one’. It’s also possible that Helene is derived from Selene, the Greek name for ‘moon’.

Famous namesakes: Harriet Tubman

Starting With I

Ila, Ines, Isabelle

Fun fact: Ines comes from the Portuguese but it is also traditionally found in Spain and France as well; it means ‘pure, chaste, and virginal’. It’s a different form of the name ‘Agnes’.

Famous namesakes: Isabelle Fuhrman

Starting With J

Jacquelyn, Joanna, Josephine, Jules, Juliette

Fun fact: Juliette and Jules are diminutive forms of the name ‘Julie”, which means ‘son of Jove’ or ‘of Julius’.

Famous namesakes: Josephine Baker, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

Starting With K

Kathleen, Katheryn/Katherine, Kay

Fun fact: The name Kay means ‘pure and clear’. In Arthurian legends, Sir Kay is one of the Knights of the Round Table. Other cultures may stylise it as Cai or Cei.

Famous namesakes: Katharine Hepburn, Katherine Heigl, Katherine Langford

Starting With L

Lea, Lisette, Louise, Lucie

Fun fact: Lea is in the top 500 most popular French female names for 2019, and is usually in the world’s top 1000 every year.

Famous namesakes: Lea Salonga, Lea Michele, Lea Thompson, Lea Seydoux

Starting With M

Madeline, Manon, Margaux/Margot, Marguerite, Marie, Mathilde, Monique

Fun fact: Madeline was a children’s book series that later got turned into a cute and iconic animated TV show.

Famous namesakes: Marie Curie, Margot Robbie, Marie Antoinette

Starting With N

Nadine, Natalie, Nicolette, Noelle

Fun fact: ‘Noelle’ comes from ‘Noel’, which means Christmas in French. Parents typically choose this name for babies whose birthdays fall in December.

Famous namesakes: Natalie Portman, Noelle Stevenson

Starting With O

Odette, Odile

Fun fact: The most famous Odette is a fictional one – she’s the main character in Tchaikovsky’s ballet masterpiece Swan Lake.

Famous namesakes: Saint Odile, Odette Annable

Starting With P

Paige, Patrice, Paulette

Fun fact: Paige is an androgynous name that can be used for either men or women.

Famous namesakes: Paulette Goddard, Paige McKenzie

Starting With R

Rachelle, Raissa, Renee, Rosamonde, Roselyn, Roxanne, Ruby

Fun fact: Roxanne is the main character’s love interest in the classic French play Cyrano de Bergerac.

Famous namesakes: Ruby Rose, Rachelle Ann Go, Renee Zellweger

Starting With S

Selena, Simone, Sofia/Sophie, Solange, Stella, Suzanne, Sylvie

Fun fact: Sofia/Sophia is one of the most popular French women’s names in the world; it’s usually in the annual top 10 for Italy, Spain, and the US.

Famous namesakes: Simone de Beauvoir, Solange Knowles, Sofia Boutella

Starting With T

Therese, Tilda

Fun fact: ‘Tilda’ actually comes from the German ‘Matilda’, but it became popular in France as well.

Famous namesakes: Tilda Swinton

Starting With V

Valerie, Veronique, Violet/Violette, Vivienne

Fun fact: The Zutons wrote a song called “Valerie” in 2006. Amy Winehouse’s 2007 cover reached #2 in the charts.

Famous namesakes: Vivienne Westwood, Violet Chachki

Starting With Y

Ygraine, Yvette, Yvonne

Fun fact: Ygraine (sometimes spelled Igraine) was, according to legend, King Arthur’s mother.

Famous namesakes: Yvonne Strahovski

Ma Petite Fille

Name trends come and go, but French female names will always be timeless. You, your family, your friends, and your baby girl will love a French name, so if you’re expecting, make sure to put a few at the top of your ‘baby names’ list.

RELATED: These Names Will Make You Laugh Out Loud