Are we more attracted to people with a sexy name? Maybe — but what makes a name more seductive, anyway? Interactive website Baby Name Wizard delved into its database of thousands of names, polling its American users on which names they consider sexiest for an exclusive report. Are you ready for the results?
Sexiest Women's Names
Ooh la la! You won't be surprised to see which language's names are considered the sexiest. "For girls, French is number one, followed by Italian," says Baby Name Wizard founder Laura Wattenberg. "And double letters are apparently extra steamy." Double your fun?
1. Scarlett: The legendary Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With the Wind had that name for a reason. That deep red color is all about passion.
2. Scarlet: Even without the original double-t, this name holds a magnetic allure.
3. Nicolette: Nicole is sexy on its own, but add that French -ette and it's out of control. That said, does anyone else think "Nicorette" when they see this name?
4. Natalia: Sounds like an extremely flexible gymnast who's up for anything.
5. Anaïs: This name is unstoppable, not least because it happens to belong to French erotic writer Anaïs Nin.
6. Paulina: Between models Paulina Gretzky and Paulina Porizkova, we definitely get what's hot about this name.
7. Alessandra: Sounds like the wealthy heiress heroine of a romance novel or soap opera. Maybe a descendant of a Russian Czar!
8. Chanel: The luxury brand created by one of the 20th century's most liberated, powerful, and intriguing women.
9. Adrianna: That's my name! Well, plus that extra "n." Would adding that letter make me just a nth more attractive, I wonder?
10. Giuliana: "Juliana" seems so much more innocent than "Giuliana" — but why?
11. Kassandra: According to Greek mythology, Cassandra had prophetic gifts and was a daughter of the king of Troy. When she spurned Apollo's love, he cursed her so that no one would believe her truthful prophecies! Does being hot make you less credible?
12. Leila: This name is of Arabic origin and means "night beauty."
13. Simone: There's just something sassy and gamine about girls' names derived from boys' names, especially Simone.
14. Daniella: What were we just saying about feminized boys' names?
15. Dominique: The name of a dominatrix! Seriously, according to Baby Name Wizard, "Dominique is from the Latin Dominicus (belonging to a lord), which is derived from dominus (a master, a lord)."
16. Monique: The name of that French exchange student everyone had a crush on in 10th grade.
17. Yesenia: This is a surprise, considering it's not a very common name! It's Arabic for "flower." Plus, it contains the word "yes," and, well …
18. Roxanne: This name reminds everyone of a Police song from the 1980s by the same name — that and she's the object of desire in Cyrano de Bergerac (and the movie Roxanne).
19. Natasha: Sultry Russian spy name!
20. Angelique: Angelic — with a vixenish twist.
Sexiest Men's Names
For men, says Wattenberg, "Italian and Spanish names dominate, with an occasional dashing Viking (Erik) or Slav (Dimitri)."
1. Alessandro: This name means "defender or helper of mankind." So it's quite manly, but with a softer edge thanks to the double "s."
2. Erik: There's that Viking name! Can't you picture some tall, strapping man in fur?
3. Lorenzo: This is the man you sip espresso with at a piazza-facing cafe in Rome.
4. Rhett: A perfect pairing with Scarlett from the ladies' list for a Gone With the Wind pair.
5. Romeo: This is the name of one of the most iconic romantic heroes of all time.
6. Mateo: The Italian "Matthew," and so much sexier.
7. Dimitri: This name reminds people of hot vampires, for some reason. It's the name of characters in the Twilight series and the Vampire Academy series.
8. Dane: Not every Danish man is tall, strong, and blond — it just seems that way.
9. Marcelo: Italian film actor Marcello Mastroianni was quite the luscious heartbreaker in his day.
10. Dante: Ever heard of Dante Alighieri's Inferno? It's funny that the name of a poet who wrote about hell is on this list.
11. Rémy: You probably know this name from the cute animated feature, Ratatouille. That rat aside, the name does have some sexy flair.
12. Damon: Lots of love for actor Matt Damon is behind this one, I suspect.
13. Kellan: This name reminds me of actor Kellan Lutz — so sexy!
14. Javier: I think Teen Mom's Kailyn Lowry would have to agree with this name.
15. Damian: Wha — what is this character from The Omen doing on this list?
16. Damien: Here it is again, spelled the way it is in the movie and novel! I guess a lot of us find a devilish name sexy.
17. Rodrigo: When your nickname can be "Rod" — well, just use your imagination.
18. Armando: This name means, more or less, soldier or army man. Pretty darn manly!
19. Brett: Perfect, considering "Scarlett" is on the ladies' list!
20. Rafael: If memory serves, Raphael is the "sexy" Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. Um, right?
Just for fun, here are the women's names rated least sexy, and I think you'll probably agree: Ethel, Helga, Agnes, Bertha, Gertrude. And the least sexy men's names are Abraham, Howard, Norman, Ernest, and Bob.
Do you happen to be married to anyone with these names? What do you think are the sexiest names you've ever heard?
Images via Dean Drobot/Shutterstock; khorzhevska/shutterstock
