American Names

At the rate it's growing, Maverick soon won't seem like such a maverick anymore. Heard first in a 1950s James Garner western TV series, and then as the Tom Cruise character in Top Gun, Maverick symbolizes an unfettered, free spirit.

Most known as a popular brand of Western hats, this surname has a brief history as a given name. It charted in the US Top 1000 in 1989 and 1991-95. It has been experiencing renewed interest in the last few years, having reentered the popularity charts in 2013 and now ranking its highest ever at Number 709.

Though it relates to the Irish original, Ashlyn and its next most popular form, Ashlynn, owe more of their popularity as baby names in the US to the megastar Ashley, though all three have been dropping on the charts lately.

Everybody knows Huckleberry Finn, the Mark Twain character named, Twain said, for the 19th century slang term for "humble." A few modern parents have put it on a birth certificate, including "Man Vs. Wild" star Bear Grylls, who, like many parents, will call the boy the much more manageable Huck. It was also the name of a child on TV's West Wing,

Bode is a short and sharp name that re-entered the Top 1000 in 2014 after a few years off the list. American skier Bode (BOE-dee) Miller is the most famous bearer, and his pronunciation makes this a less controversial alternative to Bodhi.

A widely used name, Kaylee pulls together something from Kayla and something from Hailey, yet somehow loses something in the process. It has surpassed cousin Kayla on the charts and is one of three girls' names starting with Kthat ranks in the US Top 100.

First Woody Allen, then Spike Lee named their children to honor the great early black pitcher, Leroy "Satchel" Paige. A bit luggage-related for non-celebrity use, however.

The quintessential midcentury nickname, famously found in Arthur Miller's play "Death of a Salesman."

With Wren gaining a lot of popularity recently, it's not surprising to see variants already popping up. Wrenley, which jumps on the Wren bandwagon and adds the trendy "ley" suffix for good measure, was given to thirteen baby girls in the USA in 2014; we haven't seen it pop up anywhere else yet, but we think it's only a matter of time.

One-time overnight success name, thanks to Hannah Montana actress and singer Miley Cyrus, Miley has fallen quickly from her peak of Number 127 in 2008. For Miley Cyrus, Miley was a childhood nickname (because she was so smiley); Destiny is her real name. Miley is a good lesson in avoiding trendy names. Popular opinion of the source can sour leaving a fresh name looking dated.

Spike is part mid-century nickname-name, ala Buster or Buck, and part word name, with an all-over cool creative dude feel thanks to directors Spike Lee and Spike Jonze. Mike Myers named his son Spike. That's right: Spike and Mike. Spike qualifies as one of the distinctly American names.

More and more parents are turning to this name as a route to the cool nickname Dax.

This version of Kaden is also a popular choice and one of the many boys' names starting with k that can also start with a C, as in Caiden, Cayden et al.. Kaiden Alenko is a character in the video game Mass Effect.

Rowdy was first famously used as a given name in the television series Rawhide, with the young Clint Eastwood playing Rowdy Yates. More recently, competitive swimmer Rowdy Gaines has been featured in a series of TV commercials, and a new badass baby name is gaining notice. The word Rowdy originated in the U.S. in the early 19th century, used to describe a rough or lawless backwoodsman. It's one of the distinctly American names.

We've had Jackson, Jaxcon and Jaxon, and now we have Jaxton.

Maeby sprang into the modern consciousness via the cult TV favorite Arrested Development, in which the appealing teen character Maeby's name is a nickname for Mae. It's also a homonym for Maybe, which undercuts its inherent cuteness. Is Maeby prime for a real life baby name? Sorry, but we can't resist: Maybe.

A spelling variation of Weston most associated with the Westin hotel chain. To avoid looking like an advertisement, we think it’s best to stick with the more traditional spelling.

This Amy/Mia combination debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2013. It could also be seen as a variant of Amaya.

The lynn suffix makes this one of the more feminine spellings of the popular name Jaelynn, which can also be spelling Jaelyn, Jaylin, and Jalen, among many other variations.

Tippi is best known as the nickname of actress Tippi Hedren, star of Hitchcock's "The Birds" and "Marnie." Hedren's real name was Nathalie Kay; her father dubbed her Tippi. Although the name will inevitably be reminiscent of Hedren, it could make a cute short form for a name such as Tiffany or Philippa.