The name Isabella has been in the spotlight recently thanks to Isabella "Bella" Swan, fictional protagonist of the popular Twilight series of books written by Stephenie Meyer.

Isabella was derived from Isabel, which is a medieval French form of the name Elisabeth. Elisabeth is Hebrew and means "God is my oath."

Other variants of Isabel include Isabela, Isabell, Isbel, Sabella, Isobel, Izabel, Izabella, Isabeau and Ysabel. Nicknames include Isa, Izzy, Bella and Belle.

Isabella is the most popular name for baby girls in the U.S. right now. Here's how the name has ranked over the last ten years:

• 2009 - 1
• 2008 - 2
• 2007 - 2
• 2006 - 4
• 2005 - 6
• 2004 - 7
• 2003 - 11
• 2002 - 14
• 2001 - 28
• 2000 - 45

The next-highest variant on the charts is Isabelle, currently ranked 100.

• '09 - 100
• '08 - 93
• '07 - 79
• '06 - 84
• '05 - 96
• '04 - 107
• '03 - 110
• '02 - 111
• '01 - 113
• '00 - 144

Third is Isabel, which is just outside the top 100.

• '09 - 110
• '08 - 96
• '07 - 86
• '06 - 87
• '05 - 89
• '04 - 87
• '03 - 83
• '02 - 85
• '01 - 88
• '00 - 94

Isabella, Isabel and related names are also commonly used in other countries such as Canada, England, Ireland, Australia, Spain, the Netherlands and Chile.

Notable people (both historical and modern) with these names include:

• Isabella I (1451-1504) - Queen of Castile and Leon
• Isabella Andreini (1562-1604) - Italian actress and writer
• Isabella Stewart Gardner (1840-1924) - American art collector and philanthropist
• Isabel Bigley (1926-2006) - American actress
• Isabel Allende Llona (b. 1942) - Chilean-American writer
• Isabel Pantoja (b 1956) - Spanish singer

Celebrities that have used one of these names as a baby name (either as a first name or a middle name) include Matt Damon, Tom Cruise, Drew Lachey, Josh Gracin and Michelle Branch.

10,000 Most Popular Baby Girl Names Want more than the top 100 or top 1,000 baby girl names? Here's a complete list of the 10,000 most popular baby girl names in the nation! Click to learn more.