By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 27 pages
of 27
French occupational name
"a merchant"
Mercer is an attractive possibility which is an occupational name that doesn't sound like one. Mercer and its cool, sophisticated short form Merce project a super creative image via their artistic…
French
"olive tree"
More and more frequently heard as the Gallic version of Oliver, Olivier could be seen as a tribute to the great British actor, Sir Laurence O.
Greek, French, from Hebrew
"gift of God"
One of the relatives on the widely-branching family of John names, Yanis is in the French Top 50 and was a fast rising choice in the UK in 2022, when it went from being outside the Top 1000 to within…
"from the fortress"
Simple, usable surname choice.
French, variation of Alan
Alain gives the midcentury Alan a bit of gallic dash.
French from Latin
"lame; enclosure"
Claude is a soft-spoken French name that conjures up the pastel colors of Monet and harmonies of Debussy. In France, it is used for girls as well, in fact in the Tracy Chevalier novel Lady and the…
Spanish and Catalan from Latin
"life, vital"
A zippy, lively name that has never been popular, but has never completely disappeared. It is best known for writer and wit Gore Vidal, and hairdresser Vidal Sassoon and his many products.
English from French
"short nose; courteous, from the court"
This courtly old Southern name has several cool male bearers: NFL player Courtney Brown, British jazz musician Courtney Pine, and Barbados-born economist Courtney Blackman, to name but a few.
Italian and French
"wood, forest"
Saint John Bosco is well-known to Catholic School children, but Bosco is perhaps better known as a chocolate syrup.
"blue"
The Frenchified color name Bleu is notable in baby-naming history as the then-outrageous middle name of John Travolta and Kelly Preston's daughter Ella, born in 2000. Perhaps because blue is…
French or German surname
"throw away; foundling; jet"
Jeter, which of course is used as a first name only because of Yankee star Derek, rhymes with Peter and may be derived from the French surname Jette, which was often bestowed on foundlings because it…
"young wolf"
Lowell is an upstanding and somewhat conservative name that calls to mind the genteel patrician families of nineteenth century New England, such as the one poet Robert Lowell was born into. Two other…
French, German
"wise army"
A royal, European name, and a relation of Rayner and Ragnar, Rainier is also associated with the majestic mountain in Washington state. Traditionally pronounced as REH-NYEH in French and as ray-NEER…
French or English
"stain or from the south meadow"
A jaunty offshoot of Sullivan, Sully will be associated by kids with the beloved character in the Pixar animated film Monsters, Inc . Some notable real-life namesakes are French poet and essayist…
French from German
"the foreigner, the guest"
Depending on your cultural references, you may think of Phantom of the Opera author Gaston Leroux, or the macho villain of Beauty and the Beast . While he's hardly a role model (unless you too use…
River name or variation of Roan
"flowing; raven"
The Rhone (or Rhône) river flows through southeastern France, and could make a strong and picturesque name for a baby boy. The root of the river's name is believed to be a Proto-Indo-European word…
"man from Lucania"
Luc is the sleeker Gallic cousin of Luke, and if you want to know the difference between their pronunciations, just watch Kevin Kline's hilarious description in the film French Kiss. Peter Gabriel…
"blackbird"
Originally a nickname for someone who loved to sing or whistle, Merle is sleek but gentle, with a hint of great grandpa about it..
"beautiful gaze"
In the past this was seen as a jokey Southern colonel name, but we have heard of some parents considering it as a path to the likeable Beau.
Yiddish diminutive of Elijah and Eliezer, Hebrew
"Yahweh is God; God helps"
Strongly connected to Elie Wiesel — Holocaust survivor, Nobel laureate, and author of the influential book Night .
