75 Desert Names Inspired by the Desert Landscape 

Finding a name inspired by the desert for your little one can be a creative way to come up with a unique and meaningful name.

Nature-inspired names like desert names are gaining popularity in recent years. The wide-open spaces of the desert, paired with its distinct arid weather, give way to inspiration for many brilliant names. The desert is also home to a variety of fauna and flora for ideas! 

Did you know that not all deserts are hot? Antarctica is actually considered a cold desert! Ed Sheeran, an English musician, actually named his daughter Lyra Antarctica in 2020. A desert is defined as a place that receives less than ten inches of precipitation (rain) a year, whether that place is hot or cold.  

Related: 75 Earthy Boy Names for Your Little One 

Why Choose a Desert Name for Your Baby? 

Whether you’re looking for a desert name to remind you of your favorite trail, are in love with succulents, or just want something different for your little one, we’ve compiled a list of the best baby names for girls and boys inspired by the desert to help! 

“I have always loved the desert. One sits down on a desert sand dune, sees nothing, hears nothing. Yet through the silence something throbs, and gleams...” 

― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

Below you’ll find desert names for boys and girls as well as sand and desert-themed names inspired by the plant life, desert towns, and even the feelings the deserts bring out in us!

Desert Names for Girls 

1. Arizona - From the state in North America, an obvious yet fitting name for your baby girl
2. Cleopatra - Greek, can shorten to “Cleo”, like the Egyptian Queen! 
3. Pyla - After the largest sand dune in Europe
4. Seri - Named after an indigenous tribe that’s associated with Sonoran Desert
5. Sandy or Sandra - Another obvious choice for desert lovers
6. Tomesha - Native American name, means “ground afire”
7. Bast - An Egyptian goddess, daughter of the sun god and associated with protection and cats.
8. Phaedra - Greek, meaning “bright”, like the sun in the desert!
9. Amaterasu - Japanese name, goddess of the sun
10.  Ari - Hebrew name, means lion, lions are one of the animals in the Sahara Desert!
11.  Atacama - Named after the driest desert in the world from Chile
12.  Boa - After a desert rosy boa snake that lives in the Mojave Desert
13.  Bosa - Old English name meaning “clearing or glade”
14.  Dykuma - Lithuanian name  for “desert”
15.  Gila - After the river that runs through New Mexico and Arizona
16.  Hesperia - Greek, “land of the setting sun”
17.  Johona - Navajo name meaning “the sun”
18.  Leona - Latin, “lion”
19.  Sahara - The largest hot desert in the world, found in North Africa’s Morrocco
20.  Kalahari - This is the name of a desert in Africa meaning “the great thirst”
21.  Sonora - A Mexican state boarded by Chihuahuan Desert means “pleasant sounding”
22.  Sunny/Sunshine - Obvious choice, this is a beautiful name for a baby girl that lights up your life!
23.  Magdalena - Part of the Sonoran Desert
24.  Savannah - Spanish, means “treeless plain” but definitely makes us think of the South
25.  Daenerys - Popularized by Game of Thrones, “lady of light” or “lady of hope”, the character spent plenty of time crossing deserts
26.  Angola - Located on the west coast of South Africa, this place is another known for their deserts 
27. Nevada - Another state in North America where desert covers land
28.  Asia - Greek, means “Sunrise” 
29.  Namibia - For the Namib Desert, the oldest in the world!
30.  Sinai - Hebrew, “from the clay desert”
31.  Kuuma - Finnish for “hot”

Desert Names for Boys 

1.  Gobi - Indian name meaning “happy”
2.  Jack - After the jackrabbits that run around in the deserts 
3.  Audun - Means “deserted”
4.  Aster - After the Mojave aster plant
5.  Altan - Mongolian name meaning “golden” just like that desert sun!
6.  Erden - Also from Mongolia meaning “treasure”
7.  Rayan - From Pakistan meaning “brilliant; bright, and radiant” 
8.  Auraq - Also from Pakistan meaning “sand or dust colored”
9.  Basin - After the Great Basin National Park in the desert of Nevada
10.  Yemen/Yamin - A country in south Saudia Arabia, this comes from the Arabic word for “south” which is often associated with heat
11.  Kahli - From the biggest desert of the Arabian Peninsula, this means “eternal”
12.  Edan - Hebrew, means “fire”
13.  Joshua - This name can be common, but it might surprise you to find out that the Joshua Tree National Park is a place you can go to visit both the Mojave and Colorado deserts at once!
14.  Saguaro - When you think of a cactus, the saguaro cactus is the common one to come to mind. It would make for a unique baby boy name!
15. Clay - Can have a lot of different meanings, but for this piece, we’ll equate it with the sands covering the desert!
16.  Marudeva - Hindi, “lord of the desert”
17.  Nero - Latin, “powerful”  
18.  Grannus - The Celtic god of fire and sun, great for a strong baby boy
19.  Barren - Speaks to the emptiness of the desert
20. Brick - You can’t make bricks without sand!
21.  Addax - After the white antelope that runs the desert in Africa
22.  Darwin - Only the strongest survive the desert!
23.  Hopper - Named after the locusts that populate the desert world
24.  Javier - Spanish, meaning “bright”
25.  Lawrence - Inspired by Lawrence of Arabia. A great choice for boys!
26.  Molopo - Named after the river running through the Kalahari Desert
27.  Ordos - A desert in China
28.  Oryx - A species of gazelle that lives in some deserts
29.  Tucson - A state in Arizona, a desert state
30.  Thar - After the Thar Desert in Pakistan, “ice”
31.  Soloman - “Man of peace”
32.  Moreno - Spanish name, can be shortened to “Reno” for the city in Nevada or means “brown haired”
33.  Rocky - Most desert lands are rock
34.  Khufu - After the great Egyptian pharaoh

Desert Names That Are Gender-Neutral 

1.  Acacia - Greek, “thorny tree”
2. Jordan - A river that runs through the desert-like plains of Israel 
3. Sage - After the common desert sage that grows wild despite the environment
4.  Arid - Describes the dry air of the desert
5.  Tequila - The name may be very different, but if you’re a fan of the stuff, it’s made from the agave plant that grows in the desert!
6.  Zuni - Native American name, “beauty” after the Zuni tribe in New Mexico
7.  Ryn - Welsh name, “ruler”, like the many ancient rulers of the deserts
8.  Thorn - For obvious reasons, this an ode to those prickly cactus
9.  Sphinx - Like the great sphinx found in the deserts of Egypt!
10.  Phoenix - After the mythical bird and means “deep red” 

For more baby name inspiration check out these popular baby name lists:

• 150 Cute Nicknames for Your Baby Girl
• Top 1000 Most Popular Baby Girl Names in the U.S
• Top 1000 Most Popular Baby Boy Names in the U.S

Considering one of these desert names? Pin it to save it for later: