One of my embarrassing little obsessions is princess names.  The whole idea of royalty, in these modern times, is kind of embarrassing.  And then there’s the issue of encouraging your daughter to aspire to be a princess rather than, say, a doctor or an astronaut.  For more on this, check out Peggy Orenstein’s great piece from the New York Times, “What’s Wrong With Cinderella?” and her bestselling book, Cinderella Ate My Daughter.

　　The fact, in our experience, is that most little girls go through a phase of wanting to be princesses whether you encourage them to or not.  And there’s a lot of great name inspiration to be found in the world of royalty.

　　The most obvious place to start is with names that mean princess — for the most part limited to Sarah and her variations.  Sara, Sera, Sarai, Sadie, Soraya, and Zadie are all possibilities.  A British “glamour model” named her daughter Princess, though we don’t recommend this.

　　Another source for princess names is fictional: fairy tales, legends, and the art of Walt Disney.  Some ideas:

　　Ariel — The Little Mermaid, princess of an undersea world, has already inspired many namesakes.

　　Aurora — One of the “real” names of Sleeping Beauty.

　　Fiona — The princess from Shrek, a great role model though a little girl might feel ambivalent about carrying her name.

　　Giselle — The heroine played by Amy Adams in Enchanted.

　　Jasmine — The name of the princess in Aladdin gave rise to a generation of real-life girls named Jasmine (and Jazmyn, Yasmina, et al)

　　Kilala — A Japanese fantasy/romance manga princess whose story plays out against her Disney counterparts.

　　Odette — The Swan Princess.

　　Sasami — Japanese anime character who is a princess of Jurai.

　　Signy — Princess heroine of an Icelandic fairy tale who lives inside a giant oak tree.

　　Tiana — Disney’s first black princess.

　　Vasilissa — Meaning “queen” in Greek, Vasilissa is the heroine of a Russian fairy tale who starts out as a poor girl and ends up marrying the king.

　　Zelda — Princess in the popular Legend of Zelda video game.

　　Better inspiration might be found via the real little princesses of the world, with their string of four or five names for some poor future spouse to stumble over at the royal wedding.   A selection of those born over the past decade or so:

　　Aiko — Japan

　　Alexandra Charlotte Ulrike Maryam Virginia — Hanover

　　Alexia Juliana Marcela Laurentien — Netherlands

　　Amelia — Greece

　　Ana María — Greece

　　Anastasia “Anna” Margriet Josephine – Netherlands

　　Ariane Wilhelmina Maxima Ines — Netherlands

　　Arrietta — Greece

　　Catharina–Amalia Beatrix Carmen Victoria – Netherlands

　　Elisabeth Thérèse Marie Hélène of Belgium

　　Eleonore Fabiola Victoria Anne Marie – Belgium

　　Eloise Sophie Beatrix Laurence — Netherlands

　　Emma Luana Ninette Sophie (Luana) — Netherlands

　　Emma Talullah – Norway

　　Felicia Juliana Benedicte Barbara — Netherlands

　　Ingrid Alexandra – Norway

　　Ingrid Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte — Denmark

　　Irene — Spain

　　Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe — Denmark

　　Isabella Lily Juliana – Netherlands

　　Joanna Zaria Nicoline Milou (Zaria) — Netherlands

　　Laetitia Maria – Belgium

　　Laila Khadija – Morocco

　　Leah Isadora — Norway

　　Leonor — Spain

　　Leonore Marie Irene Enrica — Netherlands

　　Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary— Great Britain

　　Louise Sophie Mary — Belgium

　　Magali Margriet Eleonoor — Netherlands

　　Maria Olympia — Greece

　　Maud Angelica — Norway

　　Sofia – Spain

　　Victoria Federica – Spain

　　What’s your favorite?  What are some princess-worthy names and combinations that haven’t yet been attached to real royal babies?  Let us know!