20 Gemstone-Inspired Baby Names That Truly Shine
Finding the perfect baby name involves a lot of thought. The goal is to find a name that is timeless; something new and current all the while being classic enough not to sound rooted to a certain time period. (As someone with the name Stacy, I can speak to the weirdness of having a name that instantly conjures up the decade-specific banana clipped mall hair of the '80s.) To strike gold with a perfect category of names that precious, enduring and forever, think gemstone-inspired names. Gem-inspired names are perfect to ensure everyone knows your baby shines bright like diamond (and a great way to pay tribute to Rihanna indirectly).
Naming a baby after a gemstone seems like a no-brainer -- both are precious! Gem-inspired names are at once distinctive but also entrenched in day-to-day language enough to prevent that one aunt who is kind of jerk from saying "wait, how do you spell that?" while making a stink face. Names like Pearl and Ruby have seen some popularity in recent years but never quite reached total saturation like the Sophias and Jacksons did. They also have a cozy old-lady charm while avoiding the harshness of names like Hester or Edith (which, come to think of it, we actually like, too). Grandma names aren't the only names getting attention, there are also Grandpa-inspired gemstone names like Jasper. Gem-inspired names don't even need to fall into a grandparent binary, with great unisex names like Garnet and Mica. There are even some names on this list like Crystal and Amber that have a definite 1980s throwback feel, without feeling my personal plight of being chained to the time period people listened to Rick Astley on purpose (Brittany, Tiffany, I see you). There are so many gem-inspired names it's easy to find one that rocks!