How to Give Your Baby a French Name

You've climbed the Eiffel Tower, cruised the Seine and swam in the blue waters of the Cote d'Azure. Or you are French. Bring back the memories of France with a French name for your child. Below are some suggestions, complete with French spellings and meanings.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Baby Names
• Genealogy Books
• Internet Access
• Computers
• Genealogy Software

1. Go for a name that symbolizes strength. For a girl, Brigitte means strong, and Nicole or Nicolette means victorious people. For a boy, Guillaume, the French form of William, means determined guardian. Bernard means brave as a bear.

2. Select a name that means grace or graceful. Mignon (pronounced meen-yon) for a girl means cute and graceful. Annette means gracious. Charlotte means little and womanly.

3. Opt for a name that symbolizes prosperity and freedom. Eduard for a boy means prosperous guardian, while Francois (pronounced Fran-swa) means free. The American version of this name is Frank.

4. Decide on a name that means love. For girls, Aimee and Cheri or Shari all mean love.

5. Choose a biblical name. For boys, consider Jean (a form of John), Marc, Luc (a form of Luke) and Jacques. For girls, Marie is the French form of Mary, and Michelle means "who is like God."

6. Give your child a fun name. For girls, Juliette means youthful, Monet signifies art, and Chantal means song. For boys, Philippe means lover of horses, and Antoine (pronounced An-twon) means praiseworthy.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep in mind that these names come from various parts of the country and can be derived from different cultures. The spellings and meaning may vary slightly from region to region - check with your family or other resources if this is important in naming your child.

on 11/22/2005 The tip on "How to Give your Baby a French Name" (with a green asterisk written by Patricia) is exactly right. The original text was full of mistakes. I might add that "Michelle" is created out of "Michel" (same pronunciation), meaning Michael (likewise "Danielle" out of "Daniel"). Those feminine forms are inventions from the 20th century.

on 11/22/2005 I am a French native. I can tell that some of the first names provided here are not French.

"Chérie" is only an adjective meaning "beloved." "Shari" is not French at all.

"Mignon" is a masculine adjective meaning cute. "Monet" is the last name of a famous French painter, but not a first name at all. Would you name your daughter Cute Boy or Warhol?

Eduard is mispelled (should be Edouard). François means "French," and some other etymologies (Charlotte, etc) are false.

on 11/22/2005 Madeleine stems from the greeks and means "Tower of strength"

on 11/22/2005 Try this site.