Gracie

Gracie is the diminutive form of Grace, which comes from the Latin gratia — favor, thanks, divine blessing. The nickname has outgrown its original role and now stands on its own, worn by Gracie Allen opposite George Burns in the golden age of radio, and by a generation of contemporary parents drawn to its front-porch warmth. It broke the U.S. top 200 in 2007 and has held comfortably inside the top 300 since. The -ie ending gives it a vintage sweetness shared with Maisie, Josie, and Ellie. Two syllables, all sunlight. A name like a screen door left open in June.