Names That Mean Blond

Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn put this name in play as a first name, but David Bowie (born with the considerably less marketable moniker of David Robert Jones) dyed it blond and gave it charisma. He changed his surname in 1965 to avoid confusion with the then popular Davy Jones of The Monkees, and especially since his death, his admirers have seen it as an increasingly viable baby name namesake.

An ancient Roman clan name, Flavia is one choice that's unusual but historic. Now a Top 60 name in Italy, Flavia has been a rarity in the US, but with the upswing in F names for girls, this could change. Seen more in literature than real life, Flavia was used as far back as an1580 romance, then in a William Dean Howells novel and as a Princess in The Prisoner of Zenda. Although the original pronunciation is FLAH-via, Flavie (as in flavor) could make a cute nickname.

More appealing than the English version, Aubin might be seen as a fresher and more decidedly masculine twist on Aubrey. This handsome discovery is now ranked at Number 311 in its native France.

Has a bit of a hayseed image, and that oy sound is tough to work with.

Flavius is an ancient Roman family name associated with a dynasty of emperors. It has an appealingly flavorful first syllable, and is the name of a stylist in the Hunger Games series.

Kenyon is a very engaging British surname name, the middle y giving it a kind of southwestern canyonesque undertone.

Music legend David Bowie lends his adopted surname considerable charisma to this stylish Scottish name for girls and boys. Born David Robert Jones, he changed his name to avoid confusion with The Monkees' Davy Jones.

Flavio is derived from Flavius, a surname used in Ancient Rome. These family names, or cognomens, were given to distinguish branches of the clan and were chosen based on a characteristic of an important bearer. In this case, the Flavius family patriarch was likely blond-haired.

This presidential name is in style limbo today - or, some might say, in the the sweet spot of familiar but little-used.

Vintage surname that's fallen out of use, but perhaps deserves a revival.

Transformation of the stolid Gilbert into an animated surname name.

If this name makes you think of Victorian novels, it's because Fairfax was part of Mr Rochester's name in Jane Eyre, and the surname of a minor character in Jane Austen's Emma. It has a distinctly aristocratic feel, despite its straightforward meaning. Fairfax is also a city in Virginia.

That extra a adds a world of grace to this name.

This name of the wife of Mark Antony (no, not Marc Anthony) in ancient Rome sounds a tad too anatomical for a modern girl.

There are many names that mean redhead or dark, fewer that mean blond, but this is an intriguing little-known option from the Basque region of Spain, deriving from the Latin Flavianus.

As with the English-language cartoon Blondie, more a description than a name.

Place name and surname that sounds a tad snooty.