Helen, Ruth, Lyra, Eleanor and Isabel

Helen

Popularity:
17 girls were named Helen in Scotland in 2006
10 girls were named Helen in Sweden in 2004
There are 2599 people in Norway called Helen, 4 of which were born in 2006
#343 in USA, 2006 - it's peak was between 1900 and 1919 when it was #2 name
Helen is not an approved name in Portugal, but Helena is

Meaning:
Greek - 'bright, shining one'

Characters and Usage:
In Greek mythology, Helen is the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda, whose abduction by Paris brought about the Trojan War.
There is a place in Georgia, USA called Helen, with 430 residents.
There are several actresses named Helen: Helen Hunt, Helen Hayes, Helen Mirren and Helen Slater.
Helen Clark is the Prime Minister of New Zealand.
Helen Keller was a death and blind woman, who was the first death-blind woman to graduate from college.

Ruth

Popularity:
17 girls were named Ruth in Scotland in 2006
10 girls were named Ruth in Sweden in 2006
628 people named Ruth in Argentina (Buenos Aires)
There are 11524 people in Norway called Ruth, 18 of which were born in 2006
#373 in USA, 2006 - it's peak was 1908-9 when it was #4 name
Ruth is not an approved name in Portugal

Meaning:
Thought to come from the Hebrew re'uth meaning compassion or friend. In English, ruth is a noun meaning 'pity' or 'sympathy' - and is most commonly used as the form 'ruthless'.

Characters and Usage:
Biblically, Ruth was the Moabite protagonist of the Book of Ruth, who after her husband dies, chooses to stay with her Jewish mother-in-law Naomi rather than return to her homeland. She later marries Boaz, and is one of the ancestors of David, and subsequently Jesus.
Ruth is a symbolic name for girls born on the Jewish month of Shavuot (corresponding with late May-early June), when the Book of Ruth is read in the synagogue.
Ruth is the name of two craters - on the Moon, and on Venus.
Ruth is a novel by Elizabeth Gaskell.

Lyra

Popularity:
1 girl was named Lyra in Scotland in 2006
There are 6 people in Norway called Lyra
Lyra is not an approved name in Portugal, but Lira is

Meaning:
Greek - lyre

Characters and Usage:
Lyra is a constellation in the Northern Hemisphere, containing the star Vega, third brightest in the Northern sky. Vega will become the Pole Star in approximately 14 000 AD due to the progression of the equinoxes. Lyra was named so as it is in the shape of a lyre, one theory being that it is the lyre of Orpheus.
from Wikipedia.org

Lyra is one of the protagonists in Philip Pullman's 'His Dark Materials' trilogy


Eleanor

Popularity:
#42 in England and Wales, 2006
35 girls were named Eleanor in Scotland in 2006
There are 63 people in Norway called Eleanor
#277 in USA, 2006 - it's peak was in 1920 when it was #25 name
Eleanor is not an approved name in Portugal, but Eleonor is

Meaning:
From the Provence name Aliénor, with an obscure meaning. In langue d'Oc of the Provence region, this means 'another Aenor' - possibly relating to Eleanor of Aquitaine, an early bearer, whose mother was named Aenor. Aenor is related to the Greek Eleonore from eleos meaning 'pity' and the Arabic Ellinor - 'God is my light'.

Characters and Usage:
There have been several queens named Eleanor - in particular:
Eleanor of Aquitaine - wife of Louis VII of France, and Henry II of England
Leonora of England - wife of Alfonso VIII of Castile
Eleanor of Castile - wife of James I of Aragon
Eleanor of Provence - wife of Henry III of England
Eleanor of Castile - wife of Edward I of England
Eleanor of Castile - wife of Alfonso IV of Aragon
Eleanor of Castile - wife of Charles III of Navarre
Eleanor Roosevelt was the wife of Franklin D Roosevelt, American President
Eleanor Dashwood is one of the heroines of Jane Austen's 'Sense and Sensibility'
Eleanor has been in the title of songs by:
The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby
Franz Ferdinand - Eleanor Get Your Boots On
Jet - Eleanor

Isabel

Popularity:
#69 in NSW, Australia, 2006
#44 in England and Wales, 2006
13 girls were named Isabel in Scotland in 2006
#46 in Spain, 2005
79 girls were named Isabel in Sweden in 2006
#76 in Chile, 2005
4698 people named Isabel in Argentina (Buenos Aires)
There are 976 people in Norway called Isabel, 70 of which were born in 2006
#87 in USA, 2006 - it's peak was in 2003 when it was #83 name
Isabel is not an approved name in Portugal, but Isabela is

Meaning:
From Elizabeth -Hebrew- 'my God is a vow'

Characters and Usage:
There has been a large number of queens and monarchs named Isabella, but few named Isabel (with no elle).
Isabel Martinez de Peron was the third wife as Juan Peron and served as Argentinian president 1974-6.
St Isabel of France was a daughter of Louis VIII of France and Blanche of Castile. She founded the Abbey of Longchamp, but never became a nun. When her body was exhumed 9 days after her death it showed no sign of decay.
There are several towns (including 3 in the USA) called Isabel.
Hurricane Isabel was a category 5 hurricane in 2003, causing $3.6 bil of damage