Updated October 2026
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English
"a thorny patch"
Fairy-tale memories of Sleeping Beauty inspire some parents—such as Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen—to call their daughters Briar Rose. But Briar plus a different middle name might work even…
Nature name, English word name
This word name entered the US Top 1000 for both genders in 2015, though it premiered a little higher for girls. There are still more baby girls named Briar than baby boys -- 594 vs. 361 in 2021 --…
Variation of Briar, English word name
This spelling of the rising unisex name Briar may strike some parents as more definitively masculine than its source, less Briar-Rose, more last-name-as-a-given-name and cowboyesque. Though it is…
Variation of Briar, English
The trendy gender-neutral Briar leans slightly more masculine with the Bryar spelling, given to about 60 baby boys last year in the US vs. 50 girls. By contrast, Briar was used for about 500 baby…
Bryar is a respelling of Briar, a trendy botanical name that is used nearly equally for girls and boys. About 50 baby girls were named Bryar last year, compared with about 500 named Briar.
"thorny patch"
Briar, but less wordy, more surname-y.
"patch"
A nickname occasionally given as a name in its own right. It doesn't have to be short for anything — comic physician Patch Adams's real first name is Hunter — but it could be a fun short form of…
German
"owner of a patch of farmland"
A huve is 40 acres of land, so the occupational name Hoover refers to the farmer who owned and worked it. Hoover also relates to the rock band, the vacuum cleaner, the dam, and former FBI head J.…