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Geezer Names for Girls

Geezer Names for Girls

Blame it on Sidney. This quintessential grandpa name transformed into a cool, androgynous girl name in the 1980s, and (in its more popular Sydney spelling) still ranks among the Top 200 girl names in the US today.

Others have followed suit. Along with Sydney, more old-school boy names in the Top 500 for baby girls include Charlie, Blake, Stevie and Ari. And other vintage boy names like Percy, Frankie, Ollie, Clarke and Monroe are on the rise for girls as well.

While many of these names still sound stuffy or downright stodgy for boys, they have a cool, quirky charm when given to the less-expected gender. We're especially watching retro nickname names like Billie, Georgie, Teddie, Louie and Ray as the next cool gender-bending names to rise for baby girls.

Here are our picks of the best old man names for girls, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

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Boy Names for Girls

Unisex Names for Girls

  1. EmeryHeart
    • Origin:

      English from German
    • Meaning:

      "industrious"
    • Description:

      The superpopularity of Emily and Emma has recently boosted the unisex Emery, especially since it became a celebrity baby name when it was chosen by Angie Harmon and Jason Sehorn. Emery now ranks among the girls' Top 100 names in the US, though Emma, Emily, and even Emilia are more popular. Emerson and Emmeline are two other popular girl names in the same vein. Nickname Emmy or Emmie makes it cute and girlish but even more popular given the legion of little Emmys.
  2. BillieHeart
    • Origin:

      English, diminutive of Wilhelmina, Wilma
    • Meaning:

      "resolute protection"
    • Description:

      Billie is a tomboy nickname name, part of the growing trend for using boyish nicknames for girls and now destined for stardom along with its most famous contemporary bearer, music sensation Billie Eilish.
  3. ScottieHeart
    • Origin:

      English nickname
    • Meaning:

      "Scot"
    • Description:

      A sweet, slightly old-school nickname name with a cheerful image. Surprisingly, Scottie is now used for baby girls in the US more than 80% of the time. Scottie entered the Top 1000 for the first time in 2022, reflecting America's current love for grandpa names for girls, like Frankie, Ozzie, and Lenny.
  4. CharlieHeart
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Charles or Charlotte
    • Meaning:

      "free man"
    • Description:

      Charlie is one of the friendly, tomboyish male nickname names--another is Sam-- now used almost as frequently for girls: in 2015, it ranked higher on the girls list than on the boys list for the first time. That makes Charlie one of the most popular unisex names around today. The name Charlie, for females, has been jumping up the charts since it reappeared, after a 50-year hibernation, in 2005.
  5. EllisHeart
    • Origin:

      English surname derived from Elijah or Elias or Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "benevolent"
    • Description:

      Ellis, a surname used sparingly as a first in the Wallace/Morris period, sounds new now for girls, as a gender-neutral alternative to Ella or Alice. It debuted in the US Top 1000 for girls in 2015.-- Ellis has always been in the Top 1000 for boys -- and seems to be headed straight up. One of the most popular gender-neutral names, currently there are two baby boys named Ellis for every girl.
  6. LouHeart
    • Origin:

      Short form of Louise
    • Meaning:

      "renowned warrior"
    • Description:

      Lou is usually a short form of Louise, Louisa, or Lucy in English-speaking countries, when Lou is used for girls at all. But in France and Germany, it's a fashionable choice all on its own, sure to gain even more widespread style credibility since Heidi Klum and Seal chose it for their daughter.
  7. WynnHeart
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "fair, blessed"
    • Description:

      Wynn is an attractive Welsh name, originally male but now also used for girls outside of Wales. The authentic feminine version would be Gwen, which derives from the same very productive gwyn element, making it a relative of all Welsh names ending -wyn or -wen, as well as the Irish Fin- names.
  8. MonroeHeart
    • Origin:

      Scottish
    • Meaning:

      "mouth of the Roe river"
    • Description:

      Monroe is a presidential name which, thanks to the immortal beauty of Marilyn Monroe, is catching on fast for baby girls. Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon chose it for their twin daughter, honoring Marilyn Monroe. Their use of Monroe as a girls’ name did much to revive this Old Man name, a la Sydney, as a newly fashionable choice for girls.
  9. JamesHeart
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "supplanter"
    • Description:

      James for a girl? Believe it or not, this is one of the boy names for girls" gaining a lot of attention these days, since Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds shocked the world by choosing it for their eldest daughter in 2014 (after his late father).
  10. RemyHeart
    • Origin:

      French from Latin
    • Meaning:

      "oarsman"
    • Description:

      Remy is one of those rare names that combines ancient roots with modern sleekness. Boys outnumber girls with the classic Remy spelling, girls named Remi outnumber those named Remy. With either spelling and for either gender, it's a winning choice.
  11. LeslieHeart
    • Origin:

      Scottish
    • Meaning:

      "garden of holly"
    • Description:

      A Scottish place and surname that was once adrogynous but now leans about 20 to 1 toward the girls' side, Leslie has a pleasant, heathery feel that kept it in or near the Top 100 for several decades; the Lesly and Lesley spellings are also frequently used, especially in Britain. While Leslie may not be the freshest name in the bunch, it's become a modern classic and is one of the surprising names always to have ranked among the US Top 1000 for girls.
  12. DrewHeart
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Andrew
    • Meaning:

      "strong and manly"
    • Description:

      Drew is an elegant formerly male-only alternative to Andy that joined the stylishly upscale Paige-Brooke-Blair sorority, thanks largely to Drew Barrymore. Barrymore comes by her first name legitimately: it was the maiden name of her paternal great-grandmother, Georgiana 'Georgie' Drew Barrymore, one of many esteemed actors in her family history.
  13. EzraHeart
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "help"
    • Description:

      Ezra is a biblical favorite for boys that's been making inroads into the girls' Top 1000 recently and continues to rise.
  14. RayHeart
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Rachel or Raymond; word name
    • Description:

      Most female Rays used to spell their names Rae, but now the Ray Charles, ray-of-sunshine way is cool for both genders.
  15. AriHeart
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Ariel, Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "lion of God"
    • Description:

      In 2010, baby boys named Ari outnumbered baby girls 4 to 1; today, there are nearly equal numbers of boys and girls named Ari. And that's only counting the babies who receive Ari as a full name. Ari can also be short for not only Ariel but Aria, Arya, Ariana, and any other name starting with Ari. Ari entered the US Top 1000 for girls in 2016.
  16. WinslowHeart
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "friend's hill or burial mound"
    • Description:

      Winslow's most famous reference may be male painter Winslow Homer, but as a name it's beginning to be on the rise for girls. Adorable nickname Winnie may be the reason. Other unusual painterly possibilities for either sex: O'Keeffe, Hopper, and just plain Painter.
  17. AndieHeart
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Andrea, Greek
    • Meaning:

      "strong and manly"
    • Description:

      Andie is a cute boyish nickname for Andrea, popularized by actress Andie Macdowell. The name can also be spelled Andi or Andy as well as Andee and Andeigh. But Andie is one of the best options.
  18. ArloHeart
    • Origin:

      Irish, English
    • Meaning:

      "between two hills"
    • Description:

      Arlo, an unexpectedly popular name for boys these days, is also finding new life as a girls' name. The first name Arlo may be rooted in the surname Arlow or the place name Aherlow, meaning "between two highlands". As a surname, it also has roots in a place name meaning "rocky hill".
  19. PercyHeart
    • Origin:

      French surname from place name Perci-en-Auge
    • Description:

      Percy is a traditional boys' name that could be cute and unexpected for a girl – perhaps as a short form for Persephone or Persis.
  20. QuincyHeart
    • Origin:

      French from Latin
    • Meaning:

      "estate of the fifth son"
    • Description:

      Quincy is a Presidential surname name that actually sounds both cute and strong when used for a girl. While it's still outside the Top 1000, over 200 baby girls were named Quincy in the US in 2021, up from about 100 a decade before. While there are two times as many boys named Quincy, it has now become a genuinely unisex name.