1450+ English Names (with Meanings & Popularity)

Literary heritage: the "Loony Tunes" girlfriend of Porky Pig. But with the increasing popularity of all kinds of unusual botanical names, Petunia may be a name we start to hear more of. Perhaps-more-pleasing Petunia alternatives: Petal, Posy, Poppy.

Spelling Camden with a K makes it less of a place name—Camden is a downmarket city in New Jersey and an upmarket area of London—and more of a Kardashian-era confection, or maybe konfection. Both Kamden and Camden are in the Top 500 boys’ names.

Pelham, a place-name surname, could work well as a first, despite its slightly arrogant air. It's what the P in P.G. Wodehouse stands for.

If you discount the connection to the controversial Whittaker Chambers in the days of the Red Scare, Whittaker is a pleasant enough British surname with the preppyish nickname Whit.

An update of Tyson for parents who prefer the Ky nickname to Ty. It was the middle name of a character on Heroes.

Son of Irving.

The old word name Temple has gained some recent notice as a girls' name via admired autistic writer and inventor Dr. Temple Grandin (born Mary Temple), subject of an acclaimed biopic, in which she was played by Claire Danes.

Poetic and easier to pronounce (it's keets) than Yeats (which is yates). This one of many poets' names to consider, such as Auden, Eliot, Frost, Byron, Lorca, Marlowe, Blake, Emerson and Tennyson, which was used by Russell Crowe.

This jazzy old name could make a comeback, the way Josephine and Ella have. In England the name was popularized by Queen Victoria's daughter Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, after whom her governor general of Canada husband named the North American province. Jazz singer Alberta Hunter was a noted bearer.

No, not Ben (you'll say a million times), not Van -- Venn. John Venn was a British logician and philosopher famous for introducing the Venn diagram, which is used in several fields, including logic, statistics, and computer science.

Blending the sounds of Bryce, Brian, Riley and Kylie, Brylee is a modern invention that ranked in the US Top 1000 from 2005 to 2022. It peaked back in 2012 when it was given to around 770 babies, but has since been in decline. Given to around 230 girls in a recent year, Brynlee and Oakley are now preferred.

Name long associated with eloquent Black Panther activist Eldridge Cleaver and jazz great Roy Eldridge.

This artistic and aristocratic surname is a bold and daring choice, but with nature inspired names like Wren on the rise, and surnames-as-first-names being in vogue, Wyndham was a fast riser in 2023.

As seen on SNL, Pat is the ultimate androgynous name. Stick with long form Patrick, and make sure everyone calls him Patrick.

An undiscovered patronymic surname, Gibson blends the cool, rugged feel of names like Bridger, Riggs, and Hudson with the clunky charm of names like Gilbert, Wilbur, and Digby. Associated with the popular brand of guitars, it could make an unexpected, music-related option.

A winning, gold locket nickname name of the turn of the last century, though also a common nickname for Vincent.

A common surname in Scotland, but a starchy first name choice.

Though it has some distinguished political and tennis world associations, most modern parents would go for the more contemporary sounding Holden. Tilden Park is a beautiful hillside wilderness in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Y-ending color adjectives like Tawny and Rusty are nowhere near as stylish as the more sophisticated Lilacs and Violets.

The short, clipped Cru is one of those modern names that's starting to find favor -- it was given to about 100 boys last year, while Crew has vaulted onto the Top 1000. One inspiration is undoubtedly the Spanish name Cruz, which came to wider attention via the third son of Victoria and David Beckham. Cru has a handsome sound and a modern feel.