Inspired By Websters

Zero has been documented as a given name before, but it's largely familiar as a stage name (such as Zero Mostel, born Samuel Joel Mostel) and comic book and anime characters. Seven boys were called Zero is a recent year.

Until recently Ward was, like Wally, a Cleaver name, but today's parents are seeing it as a cooler nickname for Edward than Eddie, and are also beginning to use it on its own.

Trippy variation on Hayes, popular enough to have been given to 135 baby boys in the US last year.

Starbaby name that might prove too supercharged for real life, but if like director Robert Rodriguez you're interested only in boys' names starting with R, you may need to add Rocket (and Rebel and Racer) to your list.

Windswept and dramatic, but perhaps asking for trouble. Quite popular in Denmark and Sweden, where it derives from Stromr, which is a fairly common surname. Storm Thorgerson is a famous bearer of the name - he designed iconic album covers for Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, the Cranberries, Anthrax, and Pink Floyd.

Now that names like Cannon and Gunner, fit for comic book heroes, are rising up, Rogue may fit right in.

Like Sky and Sunshine, this fluffy name from the hippie 1970s has floated back onto the naming radar. It's similarity of Clyde and Claude help to ground it.

An early day name worthy of consideration today for someone seeking a truly unusual name.

A lot of attention was drawn to this name when Kim Kardashian and Kanye West announced it as the name of their baby daughter, making it instantly unisex.

Even among the range of blue names on the current baby naming palette -- Blue itself, Azure, Cerulean, Teal, Aqua, Cyan, Indigo -- Cobalt remains the most unusual, not to mention the most masculine.

This super-charged variation of Jett is on the rise -- along with the unlikely newcomer Jetson.

A mathematical possibility, but the odds are against it.

A word name that has sailed onto birth certificates of both genders, especially since Liv Tyler used it for her son. For boys, Saylor and Sailor are used about equally, but were together given to about 100 baby boys last year....and 1000 baby girls.

The quality of mercy makes this lovely Puritan virtue name a quiet favorite today. Although it was most popular in the late nineteenth century, Mercy is on its way to a comeback -- it rose 143 spots between 2012 and 2013, making it one of the year's fastest-rising names. Right now, it's still stylish and distinctive, a rare and wonderful combination.

One of the most extreme of the new word names, recommended only to the most mystical-minded parents. Actor Lance Henriksen spelled his daughter's name Alchamy.

A mystical word name, most often reserved for black cats, Midnight conjures up darkness and the liminal space between the end of one day and the beginning of the next. It has seen some use as a baby name however, and was chosen by celebs Nicole Richie and Joel Madden for their son's middle name in 2009, and then by social media star, Jasmine Chiswell for her son's first name in 2022.

Knight (as opposed to Night) is a name clad in shiny armor. This high-ranking word name was introduced by singers Kelis and Nas. Knight might join brothers King, Royal, and Noble in a new definition of royal baby names.

A name that shows up on the Social Security roles of a hundred years ago. Let's hope it was a never-to-be-repeated mistake.

Crimson could be a possible competitor for Scarlett's success, though it's lacking that Johansson charm.

A new unisex word name with a lot of charm, especially appropriate for the child of writers. Soleil Moon Frye named her second baby boy Story and Jenna Elfman called her son Story Elias.