Rose and Briar are popular, and Hawthorn is cool – so why not the equally prickly Thorn? Add an E to give it a surnamey spin.

Tempest is one of those names that could go either way. Cool, evocative modern word name? Or asking for trouble? Your call, but if you decide the former image is dominant, be warned that some people will see it as the latter.

An ubercool and mysterious name, brought to you by director M. Night Shyamalan.

With other bird names such as Lark and Phoenix on the rise, why not chirpy Sparrow? Nicole Richie and Joel Madden named their son, born in 2009, Sparrow James Midnight.

A handsome, spruced-up post-Bruce tree name.

The Scarlet spelling makes it less a name, less Gone With The Wind and Scarlett Johansson, and more the bright red color that inspired it in the first place.

Minuet is delicate, dancey, and lacy, with a Masterpiece Theatre feel. Is Minuet a real name? Not really, though similar-sounding French names such as Minette and Manette are.

A word name with fashionable o-ending that has associations with both the homespun fabric and the mottled cat. Alice Cooper named his daughter Calico decades ago, while it was selected more recently by influencer Paige R Williams for her daughter in 2025.

True has become an accepted first and middle name; Truth makes an even stronger statement. And with nearly 150 baby boys named Truth in the US in the most recent year counted, as many as were named Ross, the word name is edging up on the Top 1000.

From Haruki Murakami's Kafka on the Shore, the story of a boy named Kafka -- crow in Czech.

An offbeat word name referring to the speed of a piece of music.

ALLEGRA is a delicate ballet-dancer name; ALLEGRO, which means a fast-paced movement in music, is stronger and more vibrant.

Striker is one of the new gang of boys' names that have two syllables, end in -er, spring from words, and have a macho, even aggressive meaning and image. Other examples include Breaker, Heller, and Wilder. Do the world a favor and desist.

One of the jewel names in use a hundred years ago, for both boys and girls, due for revival along with sisters Ruby and Pearl. But interestingly, Garnet means pomegranate, the fruit who shares a deep red color with the jewel.

A fun and confident choice, Holiday is a celebratory name, particularly associated with Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hannukah, and New Year, and with rest, leisure, and vacations more generally. Fitting for a winter baby, but totally sunny too, it comes from the Old English hāligdæg meaning "holy day" as it was originally used to mark religious festivals and celebrations.

A handful of baby girls were named Poem in the US in the most recent year, along with Poet and Poetry. But of course, these word names can work for boys too.

Pretty sound, provocative meaning, but a little over-the-top.

Nickname name from the era of Father Knows Best, though we can see it making something of a comeback, a la Clover and Pippa. Cricket has new potential especially since it has recently been chosen by Busy Philipps. Still, it's one of the quirkier girl names starting with C.

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.

Could be the next Nova, now that celestial baby names are in the ascendent.