Boys' names: Anoki Avalt Arvan Darshan Kadar Oswin Tane Taree
Exotic and unusual baby names for girls
Calandra A Greek name meaning "beauty" or "lark" - there is a calandra lark, found in and to the east of the Mediterranean.
Indigo A Greek word signifying the color. The question is: which color? There are apparently four quite different shades of color that are known as indigo, but generally, the color can be considered to be between blue and violet. The indigo plant (and yes, there are several types of these!) produces dye for cotton jeans and clothing.
In fact, the word "indigo" can also refer to a type of car, bird, as well as several music groups - and is used in the term "indigo children", which I only heard about once I had had my son, so you might not be familiar with this. Indigo kids are believed by some to have special - or even supernatural - characteristics.
Jonquil The name of a type of daffodil or narcissus. Taken from the Latin word for "reed" this is an unusual sounding name, which to me sounds like and means jolly and tranquil! The flowers are certainly cheery, often with yellow centers and white surrounding petals.
Kalinda A Hindi word meaning "sun", Kalinda is also a kind of stick-fighting dance found during Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago! This is a really exotic sounding name, though, classy and pretty at the same time.
Odette A French name, last seen in the top 1000 baby names in the US in 1905. It means "prosperity." The first time I ever heard this name was when watching the film "Odette" as a teenager - all about Odette Sansom, a French-born British spy in the second world war. The name Odette is also associated with the ballet Swan Lake - and you can even get a Barbie Odette, of course...
Querida A Spanish name meaning "beloved."
Salome Meaning "peace", related to an Aramaic name which came from the Hebrew word for peace.
Zandra Short form of Alexandra. Appeared at rank 984 in 1971. A "helper and defender." Zandra Rhodes is a famous and innovative fashion designer in the UK - she also designed for the late Princess Diana. And another royally connected name coming up next...
Zara From an Arabic word meaning "a flower in bloom." Also "bright dawn." Zara appeared in the top 1000 baby name rankings for the first time in 2005, ranked 920 - and in 2007 has made her way up to 711th place. This is a royal name, too - Queen Elizabeth II has a granddaughter called Zara.
Boys' names
Anoki A Native American name, Anoki means "actor."
Avalt Avalt is a variant of Harold, meaning "army leader." Another related exotic and unusual baby name is the Icelandic Haraldur.
Arvan Arvan is a Hindi name that means "horse." It is sometimes found as a surname, as in the actor Jan Arvan.
Darshan From the Sanskrit term which refers to "perception" or "sight." In India, to receive the look - or darshan - of a holy person is greatly prized. Darshan TV is a weekly tv show for the Indian-American community in greater Washington.
Kadar Kadar originates from the Arabic Qadir, meaning "powerful." Kadar is also the name of a small southern Indian tribe. And in Hungarian, the name Kadar means a barrel maker.
Oswin As a "divine friend" Oswin is also a Catholic saint - and he was a 7th century King of part of northern England, the patron saint of all who are betrayed - as he was himself.
Tane From the Maori word for "man" Tane is the Polynesian god of light, forests and trees. He created the tui, a New Zealand bird.
Taree Still in the southern hemisphere, Taree is a city in New South Wales, Australia, and comes from a native word meaning "fig tree"; in Japanese, Taree is a girls' name meaning "bending branch."
