Dahlia

原This name is so pretty! One of my favorites.

原Black Dahlia is an Anthrax song.

原It's such a lovely, delightful, and grand sounding name, only an ignorant, sheltered, one view mind from a small town mispronounces the name.

原I kind of hate this name for no reason at all. The sound is just ugly, and the "h" in the middle of the name looks out of place. I love Delilah, it has a much better sound and association. I made Dahlia a closed-minded, arrogant and problematic character in one of my stories. One could argue that she's even evil. I made sure to choose a name that I didn't care for so that I didn't ruin anything for me.

原This beautiful name can also be pronounced /ˈdälyə/ (i.e. "doll-ya") as per the Oxford US dictionary. This is the pronunciation I usually hear in Northeastern United States, and I think it makes the most sense given the etymology of the word: Anders Dahl's last name is pronounced /däl/ (i.e. "doll"), after all!

原I named my daughter Dahlia (born 2014) and I get nothing but compliments on the name. No one ever mentions the murder. Only one of my friends had even heard of it. The association hasn't been a looming specter for us. The only bump in the road is that our Canadian family had to be taught not to pronounce it Day-lee-uh, which is apparently how they pronounce Dahlia up there. I live in the US and we pronounce it Dah-lee-uh.

原The name Dahlia is such a cute, girly name. :) I love how it's a flower name. This name is brilliant as it ages very well. :D.

原Lady Dahlia was an important character in the video game "Professor Layton and the Curious Village."

原This is my favorite flower name besides Zinnia and its just way better than Delilah (hate but love that song) and Delia (also hate). Dahlia is the winner.

原I don't think of the unsolved murder case when I hear this name, but I still think "Dahlia" has a sort of dark, almost seductive ring that other names - say, "Daisy" - doesn't have. I like it, but I wouldn't give it to my daughter. I feel as though it belongs on a woman, not a girl.

原Nickname: Dollie.

原I love 'flower' names-they're so feminine and pretty! As for the Black Dahlia association, every name has some sort of negative association! What you do is find a positive one, like the beautiful flower. I've never heard it said Doll-yah, but I have heard Doll-EE-yah. I also love the traditional spelling Dahlia over Dalia; Omitting the H cheapens the name. =]

原Dahlia Salem (born 1971 in New York City) is an American actress.

原Yup, DAY lee a is the usual British English pronunciation for the flower, and presumably the name when used here. (No idea why!)

原Dahlia is the name of Bertie Wooster's nice aunt in the Jeeves stories by P G Wodehouse.

原In the English TV series "Jeeves & Wooster", Aunt Dahlia's name is pronounced "DAY-lee-ə".

原There is a Hollywood Undead song called 'Black Dahlia.'

原Dahlia is the heaviest and darkest flower name that there is. The name is surprisingly flexible; it would suit anyone from a mischievous young blonde girl to a serious older business woman.

原Ah, the many terrible connotations surrounding this otherwise gorgeous name. First, there's the Black Dahlia murder. I don't care much about that. Most kids my age have no idea what the Black Dahlia was.Then there's Dahlia Gillespie from Silent Hill. That only made me love the name more; a kooky, morbid, haunted, disturbed character that executed this dark name perfectly.Then, last but not least, the little-known Dahlia Hawthorne from the little-known Phoenix Wright game series. Dahlia Hawthorne was a not-so-innocent, beautiful girl with Crayola-red hair and a lacy parasol that captivated all those around her. Also, she was a cold-blooded serial killer who had nothing to gain from the various deaths she caused besides wealth. She almost ruined the name for me.But, despite its bad associations, Dahlia remains a beautiful, dark name that isn't too strange and isn't too popular. It is one of the only tolerable flower names (the others--Primrose, Ivy, and Iris).

原I doubt that this is really a "modern" English name, considering that an ancestor of mine (we're talking 1800s, great(times 7)-grandma) was a Blackfoot Indian named Dahlia. I assume that this was her English name, and not her tribal name, though unfortunately my family knows little about her. Pity. Anyway, pretty name.

原I met a very fortunate person with this name. They are very lucky to have such a beautiful flower name. :)

原In the Victorian language of flowers, the Dahlia signified "elegance" and/or "dignity". Fitting - I think the name itself conveys both elegance and dignity as well.

原The surname Dahl comes from the Swedish word "dal", meaning "valley", so I suppose Dahlia would mean that too.

原One time character, for now, "Dahlia Radim" is the sister of recurring character "Ladon Radim" in TV's Sci-Fi show "Stargate: Atlantis". She appeared in the episode called "Coup D'etat" (season 2, episode 17).There it's pronounced as "DAH-lia".

原I love the name Dahlia. My sole reason for naming my daughter Dahlia is because of its association with the Black Dahlia. Strange and Morid, but that's what I am. :)

原I can't think of this name without thinking of Dahlia Gillespie, that psycho witch from "Silent Hill". Her image pops into my head - she creeps me out! Sorry if I screwed up this name for anyone.

原Dahlia Gillespie, a character from "Silent Hill"- a video game turned film.

原The Dahlia is a flower native to Mexico - it is also the national flower.

原I personally love this name. I associate it more with Minnie Driver's character on The Riches than I do with that murder. So it's all good.

原This is a beautiful name, and some may unfortunately connect it to the Black Dahlia murder case from the '40s. However, there is a new TV show out on FX that began 3/12/07 called "The Riches" and there is a character named Dahlia (she is played by Minnie Driver). Her husband calls her Dahling, which is an adorable option for a nickname!

原I love this name! It's so graceful and delicate. But, as people have mentioned before, everyone who met someone with this name would immediately think of the murder, which is a shame. Maybe spelling it without the h would help, if you wanted to do it that way.

原I like this name a lot! It's just too bad that the first thing people will think of when they hear this name is of the Black Dahlia murder. Such a shame, as it's a very pretty name.

原My name. =] I personally like it, myself. My family and I have always pronounced it like Dolly-uh. Not Doll-ya like it says on this site. =/

原I think it's a very beautiful name, but I agree with the user above me; I always associate it with Elizabeth Short's murder (Black Dahlia) as well. The murder is extremely gruesome and it's really impossible to overcome the association which is why I could never use it for my child, way too depressing.

原It's a very beautiful name, quite elegant but also strong and determined. I would love to name my daughter that! It gives off a kind of radiance, kinda like a flower, when you say it! I also heard that "Dahlia" means and/or is a flower named for a botanist named A. Dahl.

原It can also be pronounced DAH-Lia. That's how I pronounce it. It's so lovely.

原I think Dahlia is such a lovely, sweet-sounding, gentle and feminine name, including it is the name of a beautiful flower. A nice nickname that could be used is "Dolly" (note: pronounced as DAH-lly). Blocking off it's rather negative, dark associations I'd love to name my daughter this. I don't think it's associations should be a reason not to use this name. People still name their daughters 'Katrina', 'Dawn' which has many obscure associations and others. There was also a film in 1947 called 'The Blue Dahlia.' I still think this is just a lovely name.

原The Bulgarian variant of "Dahlia" and "Dalia" is "Daliya". In Bulgarian "daliya" means "dahlia". That is why "Daliya" has a nameday on Palm Sunday (the Sunday before Easter) - the day of flowers and willows (the names of the other trees also have a nameday). Therefore "Dahlia" and "Dalia" can celebrate their namedays on Palm Sunday.

原Dahlia is NOT Greek for flower. (That would be either louloudi or anthos.)

原The name Dahlia is Greek for "Flower."

原One cannot think of the name without being reminded of the legendary Black Dahlia murder of 1947. Elizabeth (Beth) Short was cut in half outside of Los Angeles, CA and the case remains unsolved. A movie entitled "The Black Dahlia" is due to be released this year (2006) and will feature Oscar winner Hillary Swank, Josh Hartnett, Aaron Eckhart, and the lovely Scarlett Johansson. Without this connotation its a lovely name, but it is not an association that is easy to overcome.