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Feminist Baby Names To Empower Your Little One

We’ve included sweet names for both boys and girls.

If you’re looking for an empowering moniker for your baby, why not name him or her after your favourite feminist icon? After all, it looks like 2017 is quickly becoming the most feminist year yet, with women all over the world standing up for their rights and showing up to support one another.

To inspire you, we’ve rounded up 10 feminist names perfect for your wee one. And we’ve included both boy and girl names, because feminism is for everyone.

Rosie
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Is there any image more empowering than Rosie the Riveter? Though the character is fictional, she represented women who entered the workforce during World War II and quickly became a symbol of the feminist movement. So while the name Rosie sounds sweet and innocent, you’ll be happy knowing you named your baby girl after a symbol of female strength and power.
Amelia
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Anything a boy can do, a girl can do too, right? That’s likely what Amelia Earhart thought when she became the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, she also set a number of records throughout her career, including setting the women's nonstop transcontinental speed record for flying over 2,400 miles in 19 hours.Amelia was definitely an inspiration, and so is her name.
Maya
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Maya Angelou was an award-winning author known for her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Angelou is considered a feminist icon thanks to her literary works, which not only tackled the experience of an African-American women, but also how women can overcome issues like gender and discrimination.This sweet name means "water."
Emmeline
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Emmeline Pankhurst was a British political activist who fought for women’s rights in Britain. She was also the leader of the suffragette movement that won women’s right to vote in the U.K.If you prefer a more modern name, try Emma after Emma Watson, who is known for being a feminist. The 26-year-old actress not only speaks often about gender equality, but she helped launched HeForShe, a UN Women campaign which calls people to recognize that gender equality is a human issue, not just a women’s issue.
Simone
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The Second Sex is considered mandatory reading for feminists and it was penned by Simone de Beauvoir. In the 1949 book, de Beauvoir looks at the treatment of women throughout history and questions the imbalance of gender roles.This sweet French name means "hearkening."
Ryan
Getty
Hey girl, memes aren’t the only reason why Ryan Gosling became a feminist icon. The Canadian star has always been a feminist and previously admitted that he grew up surrounded by “very strong female characters.” “I grew up with strong women and the amount of them grows exponentially as time goes on, in my world,” he said in 2015. The “La La Land” star isn’t wrong. He is now a proud papa to two young daughters – Esmeralda and Amada – with longtime partner Eva Mendes.
Gilbert
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Gilbert Blythe from Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables has always been a feminist character. Not only did he respect Anne for her intellect, ambition and outspokenness, but he loved her for it. Plus, is there any name really more endearing than Gil?
Walter
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One of the world’s most inspiring feminists is Barbara Walters. The now retired 87-year-old became the first female co-anchor of a network evening news show and paved the way for women in broadcast journalism. “She arrived at a time when the thinking in this business was that the man is the king of the desk and that the woman is more or less a sidekick,” said Jessica Aguirre of KNTV. “Thankfully, that doesn’t exist anymore — and she helped to change it.”If the name Walter seems too old school for your wee one, try the more modern Walt. Nicknames as first names are trendy after all.
Anthony
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Susan B. Anthony was a women’s rights activist and the president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association in the 1890s. Her contribution to the suffrage movement helped give women the right to vote. The name Anthony also means “priceless one,” which is just another reason to give this empowering, feminist name to your wee one.
Joseph
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Perhaps the most famous male celeb feminist is Joseph Gordon-Levitt. In 2014, the actor released a video explaining his stance. “To me it just means your gender doesn’t have to define who you are,” he said. “You can be whatever you want to be, whoever you want to be regardless of your gender.”
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