Baby Names:

Leslie

Meaning: Garden of holly

Origin: Gaelic

Alternate spellings: Lesli, Lesley, Lesleigh, Leslee, Lezlee, Lezlie, Lesly

Like the name Holly, but don’t want the obvious Christmas connection? Consider Leslie. A Scottish name that means “garden of holly,” it grew out of the super-Scottish surname Lesslyn. It was also primarily a boys’ name (think Leslie Nielsen) until boy Leslie was passed in the ranks by girl Leslie in the 1950s. It hasn’t ranked in the boys’ list since 1997 but has remained popular as a girl’s name. Try variations Lesli, Lesley, Lesleigh, Leslee, Lezlee, Lezlie, or Lesly for added flair.