Choosing a name for your baby is always a challenging job, as one needs to be careful with one’s choice of name. It is believed that the name a person bears has a way of affecting that person’s life.
When choosing a name for our child, we tend to choose names connected to our culture and sometimes others simply because we love how they sound and what they mean.
Native American names are distinct because they originate from different tribes, cultures, and names of places. Due to its diversity, naming traditions differ.
Before choosing a Native American name for your child, it’s important you know the meaning, origin, and right pronunciation for that name, as you don’t want your child growing to dislike his/her name.
In this article, we’ve helped you put together some of the most popular and unique native American baby names you can give to your kids.
Native American Baby Girl Names
Aponi
This name is one of the unique entries on this list. It’s an original Native-American name that means ‘butterfly,’ and it’s just perfect for your little girl. One famous bearer of this name is singer Aponi Kai.
Aiyana
Aiyana is a popular native American baby name that means forever flowering. It’s also a perfect nature-inspired name for babies born during spring.
Chenoa
it is not a Common name among Native Americans. This name is of Cherokee origin and is the name of a place
Cheyenne
In recent years, this Native American name was among the highest-ranked names in America. It is the name of a city in Wyoming.
Dakota
This name means ‘friend’ or ‘ally’ and is a popular gender-neutral name. One famous bearer of this name is actress Dakota Johnson. It is also the name of a language, a native American tribe, and two states in the U.S., North and South Dakota.
Donoma
Meaning ‘visible sun,’ this unique Native Amerian baby name originates from the Omaha tribe. It’s also a lovely weather-inspired name for your baby girl.
Dyani
This is a rare name possibly from the Sioux tribe in native America, and it means ‘deer.’ One famous person who bears this name is Dyani Moreno, a Reality TV star.
Hialeah
This name is unique and perfect for your baby girl as it means ‘pretty prairie.’ Other variations of the name include Hiahleah, Hiahlea, Hiyaleah, Hyaleah. It is also the name of a large city just outside Miami in Southeast Florida.
Kai
This name is of Japanese and Hawaiian origin, meaning ‘willow tree’ or ‘ocean.’ It was traditionally common among girls in the native American setting. Still, it’s a baby boy name in other cultures, making it a lovely unisex moniker.
Kaya
This Native American baby name also has Japanese and African origins. Kaya means ‘she who arranges rock’ with alternative spellings like Kay, Kaiya. One famous bearer of this name is Singer Kaya Jones.
Kiona
This name is an excellent option for your baby girl. It’s of Hawaiian origin, and it means Brown hills. Its meaning makes it a lovely nature-inspired baby name.
Koko
If you fell in love with the 2017 Pixar animation Coco, then you’ll surely want to give your bundle of joy this name. Koko is a variation of Coco, and it means ‘night.’ Its origin can be traced to the Native American tribe of Algonquin.
Lulu
This is a unique Native American baby name that draws inspiration from Latin, German, and other cultures. It was quite popular in the early 1900s before losing traction and finally fell off towards the end of the century.
Malia
A true Native American name that also draws its origin from Hawaii, Hebrew, and other roots. Malia means calm waters, and it’s a lovely name for your girl child.
Moana
Moana is the name of a Disney original movie released in 2016. The name means ‘ocean’ or ‘deep-sea’ and has enjoyed growing usage since the movie’s release. If you love nature-inspired baby names, then this is one name you should consider for your bundle of joy.
Mona
Mona is of Gaelic, Irish, and Native American (Miwok) origins, which means ‘noble.’ The name is a unique option to consider as it hasn’t been a top 1,000 name for quite some time.
Milena
This is a common baby girl name among Native Americans, which means ‘coming moon.’ Your baby will forever be grateful to you for gifting her this name.
Ninna
Ninna is a popular and powerful name from numerous roots, including Native America, Italian, and Spanish. The meaning of the name is mighty and is suitable for your little princess as girls love to be assumed as powerful.
Nokomis
Nokomis is not a frequently given name that means ‘daughter or grandmother of the moon.’ It is another beautiful nature-inspired baby name to give your baby.
Odina
Odina can sometimes be spelled as Odyna Or Odine. This unique Native American name, which means ‘mountain,’ also has German and Scandinavian roots and is suitable for both genders.
Oneida
This is the name of a Native American tribe, which also means ‘people of the stones.’ It originated from the Iroquois and is a very popular name among Americans
Orenda
A mystical female name also from the Iroquois tribe meaning ‘magic power.’ Luckily, this name hasn’t ranked on the top baby names chart yet, so it’s a unique option to consider for your girl.
Pocahontas
This is the name of a historical figure remembered for helping the early settlers in Jamestown, Virginia. It originates from the Algonquin tribe, and the meaning is ‘playful one.’
Poloma
Poloma is a Spanish name that means ‘bow.’ Since it’s not so common, giving your daughter the name will help her stand out among her friends.
Tala
Meaning ‘wolf,’ Tala is one unique name with many origins, including Samoan, Arabic, Swedish, etc. Tala is also the name of Moana’s grandmother in the much loved Disney Animated feature “Moana.”
Sakari
Although this name is an original Native American name (Inuktitut tribe), it is most often used in Finnish-speaking communities. The name means sweet.
Tallulah
This is a unique name that is not widely used. It means leaping water in the native American language Choctaw.
Winona
This name ranked high among the top names in native America. It means ‘first daughter’ and is just the perfect moniker for – you guessed it – your first daughter.
Qaletaqa
This name means guardian of the people from the Hopi tribe in Native America.
Native American Baby Boy Names
Here are some of the most popular and unique baby boy names you can give to your son.
Chayton
Chayton means ‘Falcon’ and is from the Sioux tribe. It’s a smart choice for your baby boy if you want him to be brave and adventurous when he grows.
Cherokee
This is the name of a Native American tribe that also means ‘people of a different speech.’ It is not a frequently used name, so you may want to choose it for your little prince charming
Cochise
Meaning ‘hardwood’ or ‘oak,’ this unique name originated from the Apache tribe and was the name of one of the tribe’s greatest leaders. Your son will grow up to do great things when you gift him this name.
Dakota
This is a gender-neutral name that means friend. It has maintained its popularity for both genders, reaching a high of 58 for boys in 1995, and 190 for girls in 2006.
Dohasan
Dohasan means ‘little mountain’ and is of Kiowa origin. It is not a widely used name, but it has a solid history behind it. You won’t regret gifting your little boy this name.
Elan
A native American name of Apache origin, which means friendly, Elan is a unique name that hasn’t featured on the top 1,000 baby boy names chart for the last 120 years. It’s undoubtedly a rare and powerful name to give your child.
Hiawatha
Meaning ‘he who creates or combs the river,’ this is one powerful name you should consider for your baby boy. It’s native to the Iroquois tribe with alternate spellings Hyawathah, Ayenwatha, Aiionwatha.
Goyathlay
Meaning ‘the one who yawns,’ Goyathlay is a rare Native American name that hasn’t entered the top 1,000 baby names list for quite a long time. You may want to add it to your bucket list.
Holata
This is another unique name that has a strong history. Holata, which means ‘alligator,’ was the name of a Seminole chief popularly known as Chief Billy Bowlegs. He is known to have led the Seminole people during the second and third Seminole wars.
Kele
This name is not very common, and it’s of both African and Native American origin. In Africa, it means stone cave, while in native America, it means sparrow.
Keokuk
This is a rare name that means ‘one who is watchful or alert.’ It can be spelled as kiocuk or kiokuk
Lúta
Of Sioux origin, meaning ‘red.’ It is not a common name as it hasn’t secured a spot on the top 1,000 list of baby names for a long time.
Mato
This name draws its origin from numerous languages, including Portuguese, Japanese, and Sioux (Native America). Mato means bear and is not a frequently given name.
Nashoba
This is a rare native American name from the Choctaw tribe, which means wolf. It is also the name of a resort area in Massachusetts that offers snow tubing, skiing, and other wintertime activities.
Onaconda
This is a Cherokee name that means ‘white owl.’ Onaconda is a rare name that hasn’t been on the top 1,000 baby name list for over a century.
Powhatan
Powhatan is the name of a tribe and a place. It is originally from Algonquin with variations Powhaten, Pohetan, Powatan, Powhattan.
Sahale
A rare native American name that possibly originated from Salish. The name means high place. There’s a popular climbing and hiking spot in North Cascades National Park in Washington State known as Sahale Mountains.
Seattle
This name means’ man of high status” It is not a widely used name, and an alternative variation is Seatle. Seattle is also the name of the largest city in Washington state named in honor of Chief Seattle, a Native American chief of the Duwamish tribe.
Sequoyah
Sequoyah simply means a hog and is not a frequently given name. It was also the name of a famous Cherokee painter, silversmith, and warrior who invented a system of writing for the Cherokee people.
Shawnee
Shawnee is the name of a Native American tribe with diminutives Sean, Shawney, Shaun. There’s a conservation area in southern Illinois known as the Shawnee National Forest; it is 280,000 acres of breathtaking scenery where people can engage in various outdoor recreational activities, including fishing, swimming, and hiking.
Tahoma
This is a unique native American name that means ‘giver of water.’ It is also a popular Indian baby boy name that means ‘someone with a cute personality.’ Whichever meaning you decide to go with, we’re pretty sure your son would love it.
Anakin
Anakin is a relatively popular native American baby name that means ‘soldier.’ A famous bearer of the name is Anakin Skywalker, aka Darth Vader, a fictional character in Star Wars.
Tokala
Meaning ‘fox,’ Tokala is a unique baby Native American baby boy name from the Sioux tribe. It has a tinge of masculinity and is just what your baby boy needs to boost his confidence as he grows.
Tyee
Tyee is an uncommon Native American name that means ‘leader’ or ‘big and superior.’ It hasn’t been a top 1,000 name in the last century.
Yuma
This is a Native American/Japanese name with diminutives Uma, Yhuma, Yumah, Yoomah. Yuma is a tribe name and also means ‘chief’s son.
