I really love the name
Safiya, it was one of my favourites for a long time and now I'm appreciating it again. The only problem is how to write it, I think
Safiyyah and Safiyya are better transliterations but in English it looks like too many letters. Safia is the simplest spelling but maybe too close to
Sofia? And there's the Turkish Safiye. What do you think? Do you prefer it to another favourite of mine,
Mariam?
I've also come across/been thinking about quite a few lovely names recently which either aren't on the name database here or haven't been talked about much, so I thought I'd mention them and see if any interest you, whether you love them or hate them. All of these are female:
Ani
Anahid /
NahidAinaHavaNaira / Nairi (3 syllables, like Nayira. It's different to the
Naira listed here, an Armenian name used as a synonym for Armenia)
Elza
Milana /
MilenaRuslana
Lilit
Odeta /
Odetta AnushNarine
Zulfia / Zulfiya / Zülfiye
Ruslana
Gulnara
ArevikZuhra / Zühre
Zemfira
Azra
Inara
Marjan (related to
Marjani, j makes a zh sound)
Darejan (j makes a zh sound)
Eteri
Nabila
Taisa (ta-ee-sa)
SedaRuyaLera (diminutive of
Valeria)
OK, sorry this ended up so long!