EV names for girls are riding high.
Evelyn ranks in the US Top Ten. Everly and Everleigh follow in the current US Top 100. And six more entries in the current girls’ Top 1000 start with those two letters, including mini names Eva and Eve.
But well beyond the Top 1000, even more EV names await. Some feel like neglected antiques. Others qualify as fresh and modern. And a surprisingly number fall somewhere in between.
After all, we’re wild about V names, especially middle V names for girls. Just ask Ava and Olivia. Names starting with vowels are having a moment, too. While A remains the reigning favorite, letter E names for girls are also powerfully popular.
They’re outperformed by EL names, of course, from classic Elizabeth and sweet Ella to rising favorites like Elodie, Eloise, and Elora. But that’s probably part of the appeal for girl names that start with EV. They’re cousins to the EL names, but maybe a little sharper.
So no surprise that EV names for girls appear on many parents’ lists.
POPULAR EV NAMES
EVA and EVE
The very first woman, according to the Book of Genesis, Eve means “to live” or “to breathe.” While she and Adam were exiled from Eden, the name remains popular. Adding an ‘a’ makes it Eva, the Latin form of the traditional name. Eva has almost always been more popular in the US. Both travel nicely across most European languages.
EVANGELINE
The poet Longfellow wrote an epic poem titled Evangeline back in 1847. It comes from the Greek “good news.” Some find it literary; others find it religious. After all, to evangelize can mean to convert others to your faith. At four syllables, it’s among the longest girl names in the current Top 1000.
EVELYN
Tailored and refined, Evelyn started out as a surname. Some argue that it’s masculine, and it does have a history as a boy’s given name. But it traces its roots to Aveline, which is feminine. By twenty-first century standards, Eve and -lyn make it decidedly feminine. It entered the US Top Ten in 2017. That makes it more popular today than it was back in the 1910s, the last era the name topped the charts.
EVERLY, EVERLEIGH, EVERLEE
Everly brings to mind Rock and Roll Hall of Famers The Everly Brothers. But despite our love for Hendrix and Lennon, this name succeeds mostly on sound. It mixes parts of favorites like Avery and Emily, Evelyn and Kennedy. Multiple alternate spellings are rising fast, too, making this name potentially feel even more popular. Besides the three currently ranked in the US Top 1000, other spellings of the first name include Everley, Everlie, Everli, and Everlea.
EVIE
You might name your daughter Evie, just like Sadie and Millie and lots of other nickname names rank in the Top 1000, sometimes well ahead of their formal versions. But with every new Evelyn or Evanna or Evolet, there’s more potential for this nickname to catch on, just like so many girls called Maddie and Addie, or boys answering to Leo and Max.
EV ELABORATIONS
EVALINA and EVELINA
The romantic heroine in Fanny Burney’s 1778 novel Evelina probably put this name on parents’ radar way back when. It connects to a cluster of names, including Evelyn and Aveline. While neither spelling has ever been common, both are quietly rising in use.
EVALISE and EVALISSE
Yvelise might come from a 1923 romance written by Gudio da Verona. It’s probably a feminine form of the masculine Yves. The name has also been spelled Yvelisse and Ivelisse, and yes, a handful of Evalise and Evalisse entries appear in US data, too.
EVANIA
Girls names ending with -ia top popularity charts these days, so it’s no surprise that Evania has been heard. It might have been invented by adding the -nia ending to Eva. Or maybe it was borrowed from a video game character – or possibly a type of wasp.
EVETTE
Like Evalise, Evette probably comes from Yves. In French, Yvette is fairly common. The Y spelling peaked in the 1960s and 70s; Evette briefly inched into the Top 1000 back then, too. But today Evette feels like a mash-up of Eva and Scarlett, and that makes it a little fresher than the Y spelling.
EVIANA and EVIANNA
It sounds close to Evian, the bottled water company. But Eviana might simply be an elaboration of Eva. After all, Ariana, Eliana, Liliana, Gianna, and Brianna are all popular for our daughters today.
EVIENNE
From Eviana, it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump to Evienne. It takes the French ending of Vivienne and adds it to spare, simple Eve.
EVITA
Famous as the name of former First Lady of Argentina, this name immediately brings to mind Evita Peron. The subject of a smash hit Broadway musical in the late 1970s, her life is a rags to riches story, set against the backdrop of South American politics and gender roles in the middle of the twentieth century. Her given name was Maria Eva, but even in the US, there’s an uptick in girls named just Evita following her rise to international figure.
EV SMOOSH NAMES
EVABELLE
Isabelle, Annabelle, why not Evabelle?
EVALEE and EVALIE
Evalee – no matter the spelling – looks promising. We love Rosalie and Emily and Natalie, right? But Evalee sounds a little bit like evilly, and the adverb seems to have given parents pause. Still, it’s not really the same – and a small number of girls receives the name every year.
EVALUNA
There have been plenty of women with names like Eva Rose and Eva Marie, sometimes smooshed to Evarose and Evamarie. But Evaluna is a novelty, a night sky smoosh that brings to mind Stellaluna of children’s book fame.
EVALYN, EVALYNN
At first glance, it’s a form of Evelyn. Or maybe it’s an Eva-Lynn smoosh. Either way, Evalyn is in steady use, along with Evalynn.
EVANORA
An Eva-Nora combination, Evanora was used in 2013 fantasy film Oz the Great and Powerful. In the movie, Evanora is the Wicked Witch of the East. While L. Frank Baum was a daring namer, he left this particular witch nameless, even as Dorothy dropped a house on her. Over the years, she’s been called Zinna, Gingama, Evvamene, Malvonia, Rebecca, and, of course, in Wicked, Nessarose.
EVAROSE
Odds are plenty of girls are named Eva Rose, but at least a handful are called Evarose – one name – every year.
EVERLYN and EVERLYNN
Everlyn feels like a modern portmanteau of word name Ever and the ubiquitous -lyn ending. But Everlyn has been given to girls born in the US as far back as 1906, and continues to climb in use.
OVERLOOKED EVS
EVADNE
Ancient Evadne comes from a tragic story in Greek myth, but has a thoroughly modern sound. Evadne fits right in with all of the Ev names for girls, but also Zoe, Chloe, and Penelope. The first syllable comes from the Greek word for good – eu, just like Eugenie and Eulalia.
EVANDRA
A feminine form of Evander, also a rare name. Evandra nods to similar names like Alexandra.
EVANTHE
Another “good” name, Evanthe means good flower. It’s a pan-botanical choice, a name for a gardener’s daughter.
EVELINE, EVELYNE
A century ago, spellings Eveline and Evelyne featured in the US Top 1000, too. Something to consider in our age of Adeline/Adelyn.
EVERILD
Plenty of Anglo-Saxon names feel unwearable today. File Eoforhild with them. And yet, it’s a name with history, and a sleek, far more wearable modern form: Everild.
INNOVATIVE EVS
EVANNA
You’ll sometimes meet girls name Evan, but Evanna seems to be an attempt to craft a feminine form. Evanna Lynch is the Irish actor who played Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter movies. If it does come from Evan, then it’s a cousin to all of the feminine forms of John. Or it might have independent roots. L. Frank Baum used the name for a character in Ozma of Oz, for a daughter of the cruel king Evoldo of Ev. (Her siblings were sisters Evedna, Evella, Evirene, Evrose, and brothers Evardo, Evington, Evring, Evrob, and Evroland – that’s quite a list!)
EVANNIE
This seems to be a true invented name, with no consistent spelling or clear roots. Evony looks like Ebony-with-a-v. The more elaborate Evannie might be another attempt to feminize Evan. Evany, Evanie, Evonie, Evenny and Evenie are sometimes seen, too, though none is terribly popular on its own.
EVAINE
Neil Gaiman seems to have invented Yvaine for Stardust, based on one of the (male) Knights of the Round Table. It could be respelled with an E, opening the door to Evie as a nickname.
EVEXY
Evexy appeared in a Names for Real post. A meaning and origin have proved elusive. But a V and an X in your child’s name? That’s an appealing possibility for some families. And a heck of a Scrabble score, too …
EVOLET
The 2008 movie 10,000 BC gave this name to the love interest, played by Camilla Belle. The movie claimed Evolet meant “promise of life,” which could be a poetic spin on the name Eve. It’s also pretty close to “the love” backwards. Before the prehistoric flick, Evalette was sometimes seen, but Evolet was all thanks to 10,000 BC. Despite the movie’s modest box office performance, this name seems poised to go farther.
EVREN
A unisex name borrowed from Turkic myth, Evren sounds like so many choices on this list. But with rich meaning and symbolism, it’s among the more storied of the Ev names. The name literally means “the universe,” and the Evren is a giant snake-like creature. Pretty fierce!
SURNAME EVS
EVERDEEN
Hunger Games heroine Katniss Everdeen got her surname from Thomas Hardy’s Bathsheba Everdene, the central character in Far From the Madding Crowd. While they’re very different, they both go through all sorts of trials and tribulations to win a happy (enough) ending. A small number of girls have received the name, almost certainly inspired by the YA hero.
EVERETT
Surname name Everett is used overwhelming for boys. But with possible nickname Evie, and the same -ett ending as Scarlett, a few parents have considered this one for their daughters, too.
WORD AND PLACE EVS
EVER
Ever feels like a modern virtue name, rich with promises of all things eternal and enduring. It might also indicate loyalty. After all, it’s more wearable than something like Steadfast.
EVEREST
The English name of the world’s highest mountain, Everest might indicate adventure or achievement. After all, some hear it and think of scaling the heights; others think of the view from the top. Either way, it’s part-place name, part-virtue name. And while it’s rare, just like all the other Ev names, we’re hearing it more.
EVERGREEN
A word name implying forever, and all things forests.
EVERMORE
Perfect for parents who love Taylor Swift and girl names that start with EV.
What are your favorite EV names for girls?
First published on March 2, 2016, this post was revised substantially and re-published on June 30, 2020 and again on July 13, 2023.
I liked this article so much, i love names with Eva in them. My name is Eva and my mother’s name is Evelyna. Sadly she passed away a few years ago from cancer.. One day when I have a daughter of my own I would like to name her after my mom, the same name or a derivative like Evaluna which is also beautiful.
I rarely like smoosh-names, but Evaluna sounds divine…
Eve is on our list if this baby is a girl! I’m just worried that it blends in too much with Evelyn, Everly, and Eva
I like Evelise or Eveliese (rhymes with Anneliese) more than Evalise/Evalisse. When I see Evalise, the “valise” part jumps out at me and all I can think of is “suitcase.”