Cool Cowboy Names

Cameron is still more popular as a boy's name than a girls and this simple, snappy short form works well for either sex.

One of the aggressive new boys' names, ala Tracker and Heller, that have become fashionable among parents who are courting trouble.

A key figure in Norse legend and a traditional Scandinavian favorite making inroads here.

A name that took on a pronounced country twang via Nashville megastar Garth (born Troyal) Brooks.

Evoking the image of a shady glen, Slade could make a distinctive middle name. It entered the Top 1000 in 2007, and has been seen as a character name on the TV show "Smallville." It's also a name that pops up in comic books and video games.

Sleek and cool, Reeves is the plural form of the Medieval occupation name, once associated with a local official who enforced feudal obligations, whose role may be equated to that of a sheriff or bailiff. In a recent year, Reeves doubled in popularity when it was given to 67 boys (and 13 girls) compared to 33 the year prior. This may be down to its similarity to Reese and Reid, and to Brooks and Banks.

West is the most fashionable of what you might call the direction names, with North and East (or Easton and Easter) coming up behind, and South not yet on the map.

Relaxed western place-name that still has some masculine punch, but be warned: this whole posse of similarly trendy names, like Sierra and Dakota, will soon ride toward the sunset.

Originally a short form of Odell, a place name turned surname that hails from England.

Though rarely heard now, Coy has been around for a century and was not an uncommon name a hundred years ago. There have been a couple of NFL players named Coy, Coy Bowles is in the Zac Brown band, and of course there was Coy Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard. Due to the flirty connotations of the word "coy", McCoy is a more popular and recommended choice today.

Mose is the German variation of Moses, a widely familiar name thanks to the character in the Old Testament. Mose is also used a nickname for Moses.

A distinctive surname that, despite its meaning, has a cowboy swagger, a la Autry.

We hesitate to call Bandit an occupational name, any more than Rogue or Vandal are occupational names, yet its use by one of the bandmembers of My Chemical Romance (for his daughter: we're thinking only Gerard Way could pull that off) undoubtedly owes a debt to occupational cousins from Pilot to Parker.

When Kate Hudson named her second son Bingham and announced that she would be calling him Bing, it put this zingy nickname name out on the table. Before that, there was only one, further nicknamed Der Bingle -- and he was really Harry Lillis Crosby.

Cowboy swagger via the non-cowboy flick "The Guns of Navarone," chosen by Priscilla Presley.

Strider is a name that walks the walk. It blends into many current styles — cowboy names, aspirational word names, and intensely masculine names — and has a cool, calm, and collected aura.

A spelling variation of Weston most associated with the Westin hotel chain. To avoid looking like an advertisement, we think it’s best to stick with the more traditional spelling.

Canyon is a unique baby name evocative of natural splendor and the old Steve Canyon comic-strip heroism, making it an intriguing new word-name possibility.

Author Colson Whitehead introduced this surname-name to the lexicon, perfect for a son or grandson of a Nicholas, a Nicole, or a Colin. Or anyone else who likes the sound for that matter, since there are plenty of Jacksons and Harrisons whose parents are not called Jack or Harry.

This short-but-strong name is popular for boys in The Netherlands. While Cass is usually a female name in the U.S., it feels just as right for boys.