English Names

A sweet, uplifting and still fairly uncommon modern virtue name. Its single syllable makes it especially good as a middle name, but it would also make a big impact in the first spot; in fact, nearly 90 girls in the US were called Bliss in a recent year.
 
Used to describe both a perfect state of happiness and spiritual blessedness, it can be viewed through a spiritual and a secular lens. Similar in feel to more popular word names like Dream, Blessing, and Heaven, and to more classic virtues like Blythe, Felicity, and Joy, it may appeal to those who want to celebrate the more blissful side of parenthood and the joy they hope their child will bring and experience.

Bliss

Attractive North Carolina place-name and surname of explorer Sir Walter Raleigh.  Distinctive, classy-but-approachable choice for either sex.

Raleigh

Climbing the charts for boys, and has just begun to cross over for girls, despite the macho "hud" sound followed by the "son" syllable.

Hudson

This name of three early popes has been associated in recent years with a cocky cartoon cat ("Thufferin' thuccatash!") and the Italian Stallion hero of the Rocky and Rambo movies (who was born Michael) — and yet we think it just might be ready to move further back into the mainstream.
 
Sylvester was at its height in the 1920s, when it was in the Top 200, and hung on in the lower rungs of the ladder until 1994. Lately the name has been most visible as a surname — that of Sue Sylvester on Glee. Model Emily Ratajkowski named her son Sylvester Apollo in 2021.
 
Trivia tidbit--in the 1935 movie Sylvia Scarlett, the young Katharine Hepburn disguises herself as a boy named Sylvester — until she meets Cary Grant!

Sylvester

Perry fits right in with rising boyish nicknames for girls and cool picks like Frankie and Scottie. This relaxed name sounds novel compared to such former favorites as Kerry and Sherry.
 
Perry is the most popular of its sister spellings, and given in nearly equal number to boys and girls. In 2023, there were 122 baby girls named Perry in the US. If you add in Perri, Peri, and Perrie - it's more like 200.

Perry

Earl is a title name - brought to England by the vikings - that's out of fashion right now, unlike King and Duke. Its peak popularity was in the 1920s, which gives it a dusty great-grandpa feel, but there are also younger Earls in pop culture, like the reformed criminal in "My Name is Earl".

Earl

A Caroline abbreviation that was wildly popular with Mom's generation...or Grandma's. At one time it was a <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/412/christmas-baby-names">name for baby girls born at Christmas</a>. because of its association with Christmas carols.
 Carol began to get popular at the end of the nineteenth century, but its high point was the late 1930s and 1940s, when it was a Top 10 name, reaching as high as Number 4 in 1941.

Carol

Fairly popular a hundred years ago but out of the US charts since 1978, the quirky yet edgy Roscoe feels very much in step with the trending o-ending boy names popular now, such as Milo, Hugo, and Otto. A Top 1000 choice in the UK (albeit near the latter end), it could make a cool alternative to Ross, Russell, Robert, and Ronan.
Originally a place and surname, Roscoe had its glory days in the 1880s, when it reached as high as Number 138, then gradually declined, possibly damaged by the scandals surrounding silent star Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, and then the image it acquired thanks to Sheriff Coltrane on The Dukes of Hazzard. It ultimately comes from the Old Norse elements rá and skógr meaning "deer, roebuck" and "forest, woods" respectively. 

Notable bearers of the name include US tennis player Roscoe Tanner and pickleball player Roscoe Bellamy, while in fiction, it was used in the series It's a Sin for the character Roscoe Babatunde. Another (Instagram) famous Roscoe was Roscoe Hamilton, racing driver Lewis Hamilton's dog.

Roscoe

Pam was a somewhat pampered prom queen of the sixties who was never called by her full name, which is a pity because Pamela is so mellifluous and rich in literary history. A Top 25 name from the late 1940's through the late 60's, Pamela has just, sadly, dropped out of the Top 1000. 
 Pamela was first used by Elizabethan poet Sir Philip Sidney in his sixteenth century pastoral epic Arcadia, but it was Samuel Richardson's enormously popular novel Pamela, or Virtue Rewarded two centuries later that really promoted it.
Rarely used now, Pamela might almost be ready for a revival, and the appealing Pam (wife of Jim, the male-equivalent name) on The Office may help bring it back. 
 But no, we won't be recommending the name of Pamela's partner--Linda.

Pamela

Vinny

Despite its origin as a patronymic meaning "son of Adam", Addison really caught on for baby girls in the US around the turn of the millennium, following in Madison's footsteps to peak at #11 in 2007 and again in 2010. But there are plenty of distinguished namesakes for a boy named Addison: from the fictional theater critic Addison DeWitt (All About Eve) to the 18th-century English poet, playwright, politician and essayist Joseph Addison. It is worth noting too, that Addison remains in usage for boys in the UK and would fit right in with other unisex choices, such as Mackenzie, Hadley, and Ellis.

Addison

Most likely used as a spelling variant of the popular Everett, you might also consider this name as a blend of Rhett and Ever or even of Eve and Rhett. 
 Most straightforwardly, it comes from the Germanic Eberhard, meaning "brave as a wild boar", though as a compound name, you could interpret it as meaning "forever advice" or "life counsel, life advice". 
 
While the more familiar Everett was used 70 times more often in a recent year, given as it was to 4287 boys (and 79 girls) in the US, Everhett was still chosen for to 62 boys, meaning it ranked alongside Kurt, Nakai, and Corbyn. 
 
But why bother with the H in the first place? One simple reason is that it makes nickname Rhett more seamless and obvious.

Everhett

In the 1940s, Toni began to surpass its progenitor, Antonia, but it peaked in 1960 and has since dropped back below the US Top 1000.

 American author Toni Morrison is an eminent namesake. She was actually born Chloe Ardelia but took the baptismal name Anthony when she converted to Catholicism aged 12, which is where her nickname comes from. Australian actress Toni Collette is another notable bearer.

Toni

Introduced by model Emme (born Melissa) and now a legitimate member of the Em-starting girls' name group, especially since it was chosen by Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony for their twin daughter.

Emme

This name is closely identified with Emmylou Harris, the singer who gives dignity to an old-style combo name. There were over 60 baby girls named Emmylou in the US last year, due the the popularity of all names Em-related and the stylish middle name Lou.

Emmylou

Bruin is the Old English term for bear, taken from the Dutch word meaning brown.  Bruin might be a sports fan's choice or an animal name in hiding.  As a kind of hybrid of Roone and Bruno, it's definitely got some cool.

Bruin

Flint is one of the new macho names on the rise today, part old-school tough guy, part rebel. You won't find a tougher, steelier-sounding name; it's part of a genre on the rise along with cousins Slate, Stone and Steel. 
 Flint found itself on the popularity list for a few years in 1959-60, but would prove a distinctive choice today.
 Flint has superhero overtones--there's one in "Spiderman"--aka Sandman--and Captain Flint was a Marvel comic, and Flint is both a legendary pirate and a parrot in Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island. But on the softer side, there's also inventor Flint Lockwood in Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs.

Flint

Less used than Liv or Livvy, Ollie is a boyish nickname for girls, sometimes used for Olivia and Olive. Currently out of the US charts, you might be surprised to learn that Ollie actually ranked more highly for girls than boys in the US between the 1890s and the 1950s. Around 975 girls were given the name in 1919 when it ranked alongside Claire, Goldie, and May.

These days, Ollie is more likely to be chosen as a given name for boys: it's in the England and Wales Top 150, and in the US, Ollie was used two and a half times more often for boys than girls.
 
Usually said to derive from Olivia and Olive (meaning "olive tree"), Ollie could also work for names like Ottilie, Isolde, Ophelia, Apolline, Nicola, and so on.

Ollie

A mix of pop-cultural Leia with the classic Anna, Annaleia is significantly less popular than its (Brazilian and Portuguese) counterpart, Analeia. Most literally meaning "grace + weary", it may also be interpreted as "gracious in grief" or "weary but gracious". 
 
Given to 79 girls in a recent year, compared to 43 the year prior, Annaleia is has received a small increase in attention following Analeia's debut to the US Top 1000 in 2024 and its leap up the charts in 2025. Some English speaking parents may even prefer this variant, to avoid what the first four letters of the alternative could spell.

Annaleia

Wayland

English names -- names originating in the English language -- rank among the top names in the US, the UK, and other English-speaking countries, along with such European countries as Sweden, Germany, and France.

 in the US Top 300 include Georgia, Juliet, Lily and Olive for girls, and Emmett, Miles, Oscar, and William for boy.

 include Alfie, Lily, Edward, and Ella. In Sweden, the English girls' name Alice ranks near the top of the list, while the English boys' nickname Tom is fashionable in France.



Less conventional English names that rank highly in the US include, for girls, Kendall, Kinsley, Madison, Marley, Peyton, Presley, Sutton, Willow, Winter and Wren, For boys, this group includes Archer, Brooks, Carter, Fletcher, Graham, Huxley, Mason, Reed, Sawyer, and Wilder.

 that carry a lot of style value include, for girls, Araminta, Arden, Azalea, Birdie, Blythe, Clover, Lilac, Lavender, Posey, and Waverly. For boys, unique English names to consider include Birch, Booker, Dane, Garrison, Hale, Kit, Oberon, Shaw, Tobin, and Winston.



Our collection of English baby names also includes surname names such as Lancaster and Huffington, nature names such as River and Marigold, English word names such as Love and Journey, along with place names like Devon and occupational names such as Driver.



Browse Nameberry's complete range of English names for girls and boys, continued, below, or consult our individual lists of 

English names including girl names and boy names of English origin from the English language and culture (Page 40)

English Names (with Meanings & Popularity)