letter Z
Image by Leo Reynolds via Flickr

She sounds like a modern mash-up of Zoe and Lola, but this name qualifies as an antique revival.

Thanks to Michelle for suggesting her daughter’s name, Zola, as our Baby Name of the Day.

Before you declare Zola a nouveau invention, check out the stats.

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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What do you think?

25 Comments

  1. I really like it! I’d probably never get around to using it, but I really like the way it fits with Cleo and Maude (our compromise names but he’s starting to get a mind of his own!).

  2. I’ll admit to being unfamiliar with Emile Zola (actually, I had him confused with Ezra Pound.) But now, having just read further about his actions in the Dreyfus Affair, I could really get behind Zola — although Emile is more my style. 😉

  3. Z is one of my favourite letters of the alphabet, so snazzy! Zola is one of those names you can really elongate too – zoooooooooooo-laaaahhhh! 🙂

  4. I love Zola! Very neat. Very feminine. But also very elegant! But, then again, I also adore Zara and have a soft spot for Zora. All fabulous names!

  5. As a Lola, soundalike Zola is awfully cool, but too similar for my family: Lola, Ken, Leo, Simon, Josephine & Zola? Nope!

    I do remember being pleased when Zola Ivy’s birth was announced. I thought “Wow, neat”! And that’s still what I think of Zola. Very, very neat! 🙂

  6. My great-grandfather, Cluro Elmer, had a sister named Zula Ethel. Their parents had Germanic surnames and were born in the US, so I’m not sure how they ended up being named Cluro and Zula.

    1. WOW! My husband’s parents tried to give their kids American typical names and didn’t get it quite right, and I know another second generation American family with a similar tale. I always wonder what it must like to name a child in a culture that is so unfamiliar, knowing that your child will grow up in it …

  7. I’d never use it but I think it’s a cool name! I can picture it on a little girl, definitely a teenager, and a grown woman.