Names That Mean Form

Octave shortens Octavius to a more manageable length, keeping the "eighth" meaning. In English speaking countries, however, people could easily confuse this with the musical and poetrry term octave. This, however, might not be considered a bad thing, or even an accident. Cadence, Lyric, Poem, and Anthem had seen increased interest, so why not this musical word? 
 
The name appeared in the US stats in 2024 for the first time since the late 60s, when it was given to 6 boys.

Octave

Gertie has a certain homespun charm, summoning to mind butter-yellow braids and denim overalls, summoning mind the adorable character played by little Drew Barrymore in E.T.  Is the world ready for the return of Gertie and Gertrude? Maybe?

Gertie

This could be a cool addition to the ranks of O-ending boy names.

Decio

Naum is a Biblical name, rarely heard outside Russia, Bulgaria and surrounding areas, though alternative form Nahum is beginning to receive more attention in the US. Derived from the Hebrew naham, it has the pleasing and gentle meaning of "comfort, console".
 
Also used in the Latin Bible, Naum is pronounced as nu-OOM in Russia and as NA-oom in Macedonia. It is a saintly choice, borne by the 9th century Naum of Preslav, and an arty feeling choice, thanks to the prominent Russian Constructionist sculptor Naum Gabo.

Naum

Tassos makes this venerated Greek name more earthy and approachable.

Tassos

Omero lifts Homer out of both The Simpsons and The Odyssey, making it a romantic name ala Romeo. Some sources give the meaning of Omero and Homer as "hostage".

Omero

A fixed form of verse based on two rhyme sounds, three stanzas and 13 lines.

Rondeau

A streamlined and little-known (outside Catalonia) member of the Francis/Francesco family of names. The nickname Cesc ("sesk") is now popular there in its own right.

Francesc

The ancient Roman name that gave us Cecilia, Cecily, and related names. This spelling looks authentic, but might raise more pronunciation problems than it solves.

Caecilia

Marvel is rising for both sexes, and this cheerful, melodic variation could appeal too.

Merivel

Onas

Actress Kirstie Alley popularized this short form that's been off the popularity register for a decade. 

Kirstie

Moll is one of those names that is used all the time as a nickname for a nickname, but rarely put on the birth certificate. Moll Flanders is an eponymous 18th century novel by Daniel Defoe, the author of Robinson Crusoe,

Moll

Basil and all his brothers and sisters have a meaning related to royalty, sometimes cited as king, queen, royal, regal.

Vasil

Vintage nickname Frank gets a Welsh makeover.

Ffranc

Edwart

Ossie is best-known as the name of actor Ossie Davis, whose full name did not start with Os: It was Raiford. But Ossie makes a cute contemporary short form for any name beginning with Os.

Ossie

This European version of Cyril (pronounced like French Cyrille) makes the Top 100 in Belgium.

Cyriel

This cool and quirky short form of the suave Ludovic could be an even-more-adventurous spin on Nico and Hugo.

Ludo

Cyril has several attractive femaie forms, including the French Cyrielle as well as Cyrilla. The one downside of this unique name is that many English speakers will pronounce it like cereal, so you'll constantly be explaining, "No, it's siri-ELLE."