English Names

During the heyday of Deborah, Debra, and Debra — the late 1950s and early 60s — there were enough baby girls named Deb, just Deb, for it to make the Top 1000.

Today, Deb is literally extinct for babies, though there are plenty of grownup women called Deb.

This version of Tristan, known to English Lit students from the novel Tristram Shandy, is rarely used in this country, but, though its similarity to the popular Tristan could prove confusing, still makes an interesting literary choice.

 Baseball legend Tris Speaker was christened Tristram and the protagonist of the Anthony Burgess novel The Wanting Seed is Tristram Foxe.

Tristram

Of all the <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/389/baby-names-with-repeating-sounds">names with repeating sounds</a>, Dede isn't the first we'd use (Lulu or Coco, maybe), but it certainly isn't the last — we much prefer it to Dodo or Fifi.

Dede

Dee is a slight midcentury nickname that might be short for Deanna or Denise, but might be too slight for today's strong, independent female.

In its mid-20th century heyday, Deedee — or Didi or Dede — was not infrequently used as a name in its own right. It's a cute, or maybe cutesy, short form of names like Deanne.

Deedee

Derived from the Old English déma or démere, Deems may translate to "judge", as in, the occupational kind in a court of law. Other sources suggest it could equally come from Delamare, a Norman French name meaning "from the pond"; from Dymphna, an Irish name meaning "calf"; or from the Anglo-Saxon Deormann, meaning "dear-beloved man" or "fierce man". 
 
Rare as a first name, it has never the less been given very occasionally and might just appeal to lovers of plural names like Banks, Hayes, and Reeves. Composer (Joseph) Deems Taylor who worked on Disney's Fantasia is one notable bearer.

Deems

Best associated with the Judy Blume novel of the same name, Deenie is a retro feeling nickname choice. Deenie is gaining fresh style traction along with similar boyish nickname-names for girls: Scottie, Frankie, Stevie.
 
A bit of name trivia: Deenie shot up the Nameberry charts in the Summer of 2026, after it featured in the New York Times Connections puzzle in May of the same year. Could this lead to Deenie making an appearance in the official stats in the future?

Deenie

The mythical daughter of Eros and Psyche becomes a modern-sounding word name. Danger: could be seen as X-rated. 

Delight

Stylish Delilah meets vintage Mae to make this spirited compound name, which has the combined meaning of "delicate and beloved", "delicate drop of the sea", or "languishing, weak, and bitter", depending on which interpretation you choose to follow. 

Delilah-mae

Lilting and pretty but with plenty of spark, this hyphenated name has been a stylish choice in the 2020s in England and Wales. While the length of Delilah may mean Rose gets dropped in everyday usage, it is about ten times less popular than its singular form. 

Delilah-rose

A sweet and simple nature name that could also be short for the surname name Odell, the vintage name Della, or the obscure saint's name Endellion.

Dell

A form of Dolores (or Delores) that was occasionally used in the early 20th century. It could work as an alternative to Lenora, Laura, Delilah, or Della. 

Delora

Other occupational names would be more commonly accepted, though the Mad Men character has certainly brought it to the fore.

Draper

Denishe

An alternative to names like Desmond, Denver, Banks, and Jennings, Dennings may also work as a fresh way to honor a Dennis or Denise. It's an Anglicization of the Irish surname Ó Duinnín, literally meaning "descendant of Duinnín", or more figuratively, "descendent of the brown haired man" or "descendent of the chieftain".

Dennings

A contemporary way to honor a Dennis or Denise, this surname style choice may appeal to fans of Jennings, Banks, and Remington. Derived from the Irish surname Ó Duinnín, it literally means "descendant of Duinnín", though may also be interpreted as "descendent of the brown haired man" or "descendent of the chieftain".

Associated all through the swing years with bandleader brothers Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey. 

Dorsey

Derby might be considered a word name or a surname-name. In England, it would be pronounced darby, causing confusion with that similar name.

Derby

A new-age literary name, Dessen is the surname of Y.A. author, Sarah Dessen, writer of That Summer, Just Listen, and The Truth About Forever. With nickname Dessie, it may appeal to fans of the author or to those who like surname-names in general.
 
A name with a variety of origins, it may simply borrow from the German word dessen meaning "whose, of which" or it may be used as an English contraction of Desmond (perhaps inspired by Irish short form Deasún). Alternatively, it may have its roots in French, from the word dessus meaning "above, on top" referring to the placement of something, though it may also be associated with the highest 'voice' of a piece of music.

Dessen

With Devon so overused, consider a move to the undiscovered neighboring county -- though it's nowhere near as euphonious, rhyming with corset. 

Dorset

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 89)

English Names (with Meanings & Popularity)