Portuguese Girl Names

Portuguese girls' names tend to be warm and melodic, with open vowels and soft endings that sound graceful in English as well. Many are Portuguese forms of classic European names. Ana, Mariana, Joana, Beatriz and Catarina have deep roots in Portugal and Brazil, and Isabela and Izabel show the Portuguese preference for a single l where other languages use two. Raquel is the Portuguese form of a biblical name, and Fernanda is the feminine of a royal name carried by kings of Portugal.

Brazil has added its own flavor. Yara recalls Iara, a water spirit from Brazilian folklore whose name comes from the Tupi language. Word names are also popular: Brisa means breeze, Vida means life and Rio means river. Nathalia shows a spelling with an added h that is common in Brazil.

Accents are part of written Portuguese, and they are often dropped in the United States. Ines, for example, is written Inês in Portugal, with the stress on the second syllable. If your family speaks Portuguese, ask how they would say the name, since pronunciation in Portugal and Brazil can differ, particularly in how final vowels and the letter r are sounded.