Boys 4+ Syllable Names

Appealing, upbeat name used mainly in Spanish-speaking countries.

Alexander has been in a Top 25 boys' name in the US for 30 years now. But namers are still attracted to its imposing historic pedigree.

Very popular on its native turf, foreign-sounding here.

Truly original yet not strange name ripe for the plucking by the adventurous baby namer. Aurelius works too.

Belisario is romantic, dashing, but perhaps a bit too elaborate. You might consider Belisario a masculine twist on the popular Belle names for girls.

Upper-crusty hotelish surname.

The name of a mythically handsome youth – loved by Selene, the moon, who bore him fifty daughters.

Ezekiel used to be reduced to its nickname Zeke, but modern parents now embrace it in full for its power and dignity. Along with biblical brethren Asher and Ezra, Ezekiel is rising steadily up the popularity charts and is poised to take over for fading first wave Old Testament choices such as Zachary.

This name once seemed a bit grand and pompous for an American baby boy, but a significant number of parents are now preferring it as a substantial platform for the nickname Max, among them Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony, who chose it for their twin son.

This image of this distinguished Anglo-Scottish surname, drawn from the French place name of the ancient castle of Saint Foi de Montgomery, is rapidly shifting from fusty and formal to cool. And dashing short form Monty (or Monte) nudges it to cute.

This rarely used New Testament name could make an unusual route to the cool nickname Nico. Nicodemus (Noddy) Boffin is a character in the Dickens novel Our Mutual Friend.

Xavier originated is use as a given name after Saint Francis Xavier, cofounder of the Jesuit order, who got his name from the Spanish-Basque village where he was born. His birthplace was Javier, the name of which was derived from the Basque place name Etxeberria, meaning "castle" or "new house." Many Americans pronounce the initial X, as in ex-ZAY-vee-er, but it's equally accepted to pronounce the name ZAY-vee-er, closer to the French pronunciation.

This distinguished name still feels a bit ancient, but with the rise of such former graybeards as Jeremiah and Elijah, it also sounds child-friendly again, as does the Latin-Greek form Zacharias.

One of several more venerable names that get to the nickname Zack if you're tired of Zachary. In the New Testament, Zacharias was the husband of Elizabeth and father of John the Baptist.