• Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Request a Name

Appellation Mountain

Where every name has a story

  • Baby Name Advice & More
  • Master List: Girl Names
  • Master List: Boy Names
  • Private Baby Name Consulting

Baby Name of the Day: Zinnia

May 7, 2010 By appellationmountain 29 Comments

Zinnia

Zinnia photo by Zach Etienne

Take Zoe and Zara, cross with Lily and Violet and what do you get?

Today’s Baby Name of the Day, of course! Thanks to Paul for suggesting Zinnia.

You might not find Zinnia on a playground, but she’s popular in gardens. There are 20 different species, most of them are colorful, even showy.

Many a botanical baby name has been considered here, including:

  • Aven
  • Bryony
  • Calla
  • Dahlia
  • Magnolia
  • Marigold
  • Saffron

Thanks to Zinnia’s vibrant style and her zippy z, she’s less ladylike than Rose or Jasmine. File Zinnia with the decidedly unexpected floral options for a daughter.

And yet she works quite well, possibly because her first syllable rhymes with modern staples Finn and Quinn. But also because ZINN ee uh sounds right at home with Olivia and Sophia.

Back to the plant. Zinnias are most common in Mexico, but range from the American Southwest to South America. They’re big with butterflies. You can even buy your small Zinnia a kit to grow her namesake plant and attract a Monarch or two.

 

For all her exotic beauty, Zinnia has a rather workaday origin – the German occupational surname Zinn. Zinn comes from the same soup as our word tin. If your profession involved working in pewter, you might’ve worn this name. Pewter, as it happens, is an alloy made up mostly of tin.

Eighteenth century German scientist Johann Gottfried Zinn was known for his work in anatomy and botany. Flower powerhouse Carl Linnaeus named the plant in honor of Zinn.

While Zinnia often surfaces on lists of possible botanical picks for girls, real life Zinnias are few. She’s never appeared in the US Top 1000. There was a ship in the Royal Navy known as HMS Zinnia, active during World War II.

Kid lit gives us two other bearers of the name:

  • Roald Dahl named Matilda’s mother – the not-quite-completely-loathsome Mrs. Wormwood – the first name Zinnia. Shades of Petunia Dursley from the Harry Potter series!
  • Newberry Medal-winning author Sharon Creech penned Chasing Redbird in 1995. Her Zinnia is the central character – but most often answers to the nickname Zinny.

While it’s tempting to dismiss Zinnia as an unthinkable choice for a child, she has been worn in the 20th century. A quick search through the 1930 Census Records turns up women called Zinnia throughout the US. The same is true for previous years.

So if Zenobia, Zenaida and Zuleika all seem like much too much, the pretty, unusual but not too unusual Zinnia might be just right.

More names you might like:

  • Baby Name of the Day: AntheaBaby Name of the Day: Anthea
  • Predictions for 2009Predictions for 2009
  • Simple, Sweet and Stuck in the MiddleSimple, Sweet and Stuck in the Middle
  • Baby Name of the Day: AzaleaBaby Name of the Day: Azalea
  • Reader Baby Name Story: She Picked Her Own NameReader Baby Name Story: She Picked Her Own Name

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Email
  • Print

Comments

  1. pillowhead says

    September 2, 2011 at 11:48 PM

    My 3 year old is a Zinnia. I love her name and it suits her very well. I love that it is so unique and everyone comments on how lovely it is and those who know it is a flower are always delighted. We call her Zinn or Zin-Zin for short. It goes with my son’s name, which starts with an X.

    Reply
    • appellationmountain says

      September 3, 2011 at 6:48 AM

      Glad to hear the name wears well!

      Reply
  2. Bridy says

    March 2, 2011 at 12:51 AM

    I love the name Zinnia but my husband has vetoed it on the basis that it rhymes with (sorry if this ruins it for anyone else) tinea. I still love it though!

    Reply
  3. Charlotte Vera says

    May 10, 2010 at 12:48 AM

    I can’t get past the Matilda association. I read the novel many years ago, and for a while my little sister watched the movie about once a week! Nope, I just can’t do it. And yes, Petunia Dursley most definitely reminded me of Zinnia Wormwood.

    Reply
  4. Joy says

    May 8, 2010 at 12:08 AM

    Hmm, I really like Zinnia! Much more modern and punchy than Daisy, Olive, Rose, Fern or Iris. More unique than Heather, Holly, Lily or Ivy. More delicate than Dahlia and Saffron.

    I’m with Mir, though: I grew up pronouncing this as ZEEN-yah, not ZIN-ee-ah. Either way is still lovely.

    Reply
  5. Julie says

    May 7, 2010 at 11:58 PM

    I read this post on my lunch hour, but didn’t have time to comment until now.

    I couldn’t figure out why I didn’t care for Zinnia, until I got back to work…it reminds me of White Zinfandel. But then, I work for a wine importer, so most people won’t make that connection.

    Reply
  6. Kristine says

    May 7, 2010 at 7:46 PM

    This name is so pretty! I don’t know what it is about the name, but it just sounds like a bell. When I asked my mom if she like the name, she brought up a person we knew named Xenia, which, admittedly, is very familiar, but doesn’t hold the same appeal for me.

    Reply
  7. Maja says

    May 7, 2010 at 7:40 PM

    I love this name! I read Chasing Redbird when I was fairly little and the more I think about it, the more I like it. I also like Saffron (maybe a bit more than Zinnia; there’s this hilarious children’s series that I grew up with about a family called the Cassons, and their second-eldest is named Saffron.)

    And, it’s not on the top 1000!

    Reply
  8. LyndsayJenness says

    May 7, 2010 at 5:29 PM

    I love Zinnia! The flowers are awesome, and it’s just a beautiful word! I also love Zinna as a name, though it appears to just be a misspelling of Zinnia. I would use Zinnia, and Azalea.

    Reply
  9. Jodi says

    May 7, 2010 at 4:25 PM

    Oh, my favorite Z-name by a mile! Our naming “theme” if you can call it that is not to repeat first initials among our children. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but now that we have four, we’re starting to realize if we keep having children, this could become more restrictive than the Duggars’ J-theme as more and more of the assessible letters get used up! Anyway, Zinnia could get used here someday, and Xanthe, and Quincy (only if #5 happens to be a boy). The really tough one would be Y… but who’s having 26 kids? Not me 🙂

    Reply
  10. Eva says

    May 7, 2010 at 2:34 PM

    I love Zinnia. I just love unusual nature names, particularly Azalea, Magnolia, Saffron and Marigold. My friend and I were obsessed with Sharon Creech books when we were in 5th grade. We read every chapter book of hers. That’s how I first came across Zinnia. Zinny is cute. Zia or Nia could work too.

    Reply
  11. Mir says

    May 7, 2010 at 2:13 PM

    I love Zinnia pronounced ZINN-ee-ah, but growing up, my mom always pronounced the flowers ZEEN-yahs, which I don’t like as much. I’m not sure if I can pronounce it correctly in my mind, and then I think there would forever be pronunciation issues. Maybe it was just my mom, though.

    Reply
    • Jenn says

      December 3, 2010 at 5:10 PM

      My daughter is named Zinnia, and we hear both pronunciations. I think it’s regional. She is ZINN-ee-uh (or Zin) to us!

      Reply
    • Suzy says

      July 9, 2011 at 9:10 AM

      The pronunciation was ZEEN-yahs in the South during the 50’s and 60’s were I grew
      up loving all my relatives gardens. It was later in Ohio in the 90’s a much newer generation was calling them ZINN-yahs.

      Reply
  12. Names4Real says

    May 7, 2010 at 2:03 PM

    I love when I find a baby Zinnia when searching through BA’s. 🙂

    Reply
  13. Sebastiane says

    May 7, 2010 at 9:45 AM

    I love love love Zinnia. She is one of my favorites.

    Reply
  14. JNE says

    May 7, 2010 at 9:12 AM

    I love Zinnia and tried to fit it (or Azalea) in as an mn when we didn’t yet know what we were having… but both seemed too long with the fns we’d landed on so Fern and Ivy became the mns of choice… and then it was moot when we got the word we were getting Ollie! But I think Zinnia is fun and very wearable.

    Photoquilty – nice photo! That carseat looks familiar! And Linden is one of my very favorite botanical names, too… it’s pretty, tailored and gives a leafy green street sort of feeling to me.

    Reply
  15. photoquilty says

    May 7, 2010 at 8:38 AM

    I don’t know about this one. When it comes to nature names, I’d be more likely to use Linden, Aven, or Saffron. I especially like Saffron.

    Reply
    • appellationmountain says

      May 7, 2010 at 8:45 AM

      Love your new picture – what darling boys!

      Reply
      • photoquilty says

        May 7, 2010 at 8:50 AM

        Thanks so much!

        Reply
    • UrbanAngel says

      May 7, 2010 at 8:47 AM

      Great picture !

      I’m really surprised that you go for Linden & Saffron. They seem like outliers to what you normally appear to like. It’s a nice surprise !

      Reply
      • photoquilty says

        May 7, 2010 at 8:50 AM

        Aww, thanks.

        Yeah, I don’t know why those names appeal to me. I’ve liked Saffron since Absolutely Fabulous was on the air. It’s irrelevant, though, as my husband is waaaaay too traditional – and we’re done having kids.

        Reply
    • UrbanAngel says

      May 7, 2010 at 9:33 AM

      Oh well, there’s always animals . And if you write, you could use the names.Who knows, maybe you’ll be one of those couples who have a surprise when their kids go off to college ! 🙂

      Reply
      • photoquilty says

        May 7, 2010 at 1:07 PM

        God forbid! LOL

        Reply
      • photoquilty says

        May 7, 2010 at 1:08 PM

        I just did the math – I’ll be 46 and 50 when my children enter college. A new baby would be nothing short of a miracle!

        Reply
  16. SarahinJune says

    May 7, 2010 at 7:56 AM

    I love Zinnia!!! The beautiful photo you chose to accompany this post makes me love it even more. The NN Nia could bring is down to earth for noon-believers. This post actually sparked something in my brain though. When I read about Zin = Tin it made me think it would make a cute name for a child born on your 10th year of marriage. I wonder if there exists a compiled list matching names w/ traditional anniversary gifts. It’s early but I’m quite fond of this idea. . .

    Reply
  17. UrbanAngel says

    May 7, 2010 at 6:55 AM

    I like Zinnea. I don’t like it enough to actually consider a future child, but it’d awesome on another person’s child. 🙂 I’d probably call her Zins or ZinZins as a nn.

    I actually know of a young Zenobia (in her 20s) and there’s Zuraida which also fits in with the names you mentioned. The names you mentioned make me think of Zuraida Jardine. Also, what about Poppy & Daphne !? I think Daphne, Zinnia & Matilda would be an awesome sibset.

    Also, I like the picture 🙂 It’s fun to see Etienne as a LN, because I’m used to seeing it as a FN . Nice name to suggest for NOTD Paul !

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Fetching Names: Elaborate As with Tomboy Nicknames | Appellation Mountain says:
    October 27, 2011 at 2:03 AM

    […] – A bold botanical is always a feminine choice, even the bloom is as unexpected as Tulip or Zinnia.

    Reply
  2. Baby Name of the Day: Primrose | Appellation Mountain says:
    April 11, 2011 at 2:04 AM

    […] Zinnia and […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter


POPULAR POSTS

Tweets by @appmtn
Visit Appellation Mountain's profile on Pinterest.

Copyright © 2022 · AppellationMountain.net on Genesis Framework · Privacy Policy · Log in

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.