English Names for Boys

Bold word names are on the rise, and this one fits in with declarative choices like Prosper, Chosen, and Brave. With the Th- of Theo and the strong "i" sound of Kai, Levi, and Silas, Thrive could be an alternative way to honor a Clive. Yet to enter the US stats, has appeared in social media birth announcements.

Thrive

Playful with a hint of poetry, Pashkin is a Medieval diminutive of Pash or Paschal, ultimately derived from Hebrew to mean "Easter" or "Passover". Used as a unisex choice, it could make an interesting character name for a something slightly fantastical.

Pashkin

Succinct, simple, and approachable, Pash is a Medieval English name, relating to Paschal and Pascal. Derived from Hebrew via Latin, it means "Easter" or "Passover" and was occasionally used for babies born on Easter Sunday. Occasionally used as slang for passion or passionate, it may also be used as a nickname for Pascal, Pavel, or Pavlo and as a diminutive of the Armenian Pasha (used originally as the title of a high ranking Ottoman military officer). 
 
Occasionally used in India too, it may derive from names such as Tapash ("meditation, austerity") or Vipashyin ("seeing clearly, understanding").

Pash

A rare alternative perhaps for Boston, Paxton, Ashton, and Preston, Poston is a surname style name that is as yet undiscovered. Too similar perhaps to the phrase "post on" in an age of social media, it has appeared on social media baby announcements.
 
The name may have derived from "Boston", meaning "Botwulf's stone", or more figuratively, "stone of the improved wolf". The Poston spelling may have emerged due an error when recording it or owing to varying dialects. < 
Alternatively, it may refer to a town near a post or back gate or be an Old English place name, meaning "Possa's town" or "Possa's thorn".

Poston

A surname-style choice, Foxley has a similar feel to the popular Wrenley, that is, it blends that popular -ley suffix with an animal name. Given to 4 boys in 2025 in England and Wales having made its debut back in 2017, Foxley may sound too much like foxy for some, but not too wordy for others. 

Foxley

Vaughn meets Charlie in this rare surname-style name, which, despite its fashionable sounds, has never made it to the US charts. Capturing that ar sound of Arlo, Marlow, and Harvey, the ley of Bailey, Finley, and Westley, and the sharp V of Levi and Oliver, it has its roots in English and Irish.
 
As an English name, it likely originated as a name for someone from Verly or Vrély in the north of France, two places that take their name from the Latin virilius meaning "manly".
 
As an Irish name, it is an Anglicization of <en>Mac Bhearshúiligh or just the given name, Berach, meaning "sharp, pointed" or more figuratively, "sharp-eyed one".

Varley

Solomon and Sol meet Selwyn and Edwin in this rare and summery name. While it could be considered a variation of Selwyn (meaning "manor friend"), it could also be viewed as a combination of several different elements, including the Latin and Old Norsesol, the Old English wine, and the Welsh gywn.
 
As such, it could mean "sun friend" (from Old Norse and English) or perhaps "sun blessed" (from Old Norse and Welsh), both providing the name with a hint of poetry. Alternatively, it could be inspired by Solomon ("peace") or Solange (via sollemnia "religious, solemn"), giving the further meanings "peaceful friend", "solemn friend" or "peaceful and blessed".

Solwyn

A glamorous name, associated with film, decadence, and city skylines, Hollywood debuted in the US stats for boys (and as a given name) in 2025. You could consider it an opulent choice, joining the likes of Versailles, Hampton, Golden, Banks, Cash, and Teller.
 
Nicknames Hollis, Woods, and Woody might ground it.

Hollywood

Rawdon as a first name is closely associated with the literary character Colonel Rawdon Crawley from Thackeray's Vanity Fair. The Rawdon character, who has a son named after him and called Rawdy, marries antiheroine Becky Sharp. He's handsome, dashing...and ill-fated.

Rawdon

Cool and breezy, Tez is a contemporary choice, likely originating as a nickname for Terence or Terry, in the same vein as Gaz and Baz for Gary and Barry. As a stand-alone name, it made the US stats for the first time in 2025 when it was given to 6 boys.
 
Fitting in with the likes of Rex, Tex, Pax, and Jet, if Tez is considered a variation of Terence, it could mean either "soft" or "thresher", depending on which Latin root you follow. Alternatively, you could see it as a nickname or a derivative of Tennyson ("son of Dennis"), Taliesin ("shining brow"), Teresa ("harvest"), Cortez ("polite"), Montez ("mountains"), Theseus ("to set, place"), Laertes ("gatherer of people") and Tezcatlipoca ("smoking mirror") — or any other name with a similar sound.
 
Tez can additionally mean "quick" in Azerbaijani, "complexion" in Spanish, or "thesis, essay" in Turkish.

Beachy names like Coast and Cove have become stylish in the 2020s, bringing together rugged outdoorsy vibes, with gentle, sunny, beachy ones. Now, as with many popular names, alternative spellings have begun to appear, most popularly Koast, though Koest has been spotted on birth announcements. Part of its draw may lie in its slight distance from the word, being both wordy and not at the same time.  

Koest

Similar in sound to Lochlan, Beckett, and Luca, this surname style name made its US debut in 2025. Both a spin on the heartfelt word name Lockett and a last name derived from Biblical classic, Luke, its entry to the US stats was preceded by influencers  Francesca Farago and Jesse Sullivan choosing Locket for their son in 2024. 

Lockett

Rarely heard name that could sub for Graham. 

Braham

New Testament, Texas, and Kansas place-name more fitting for a girl. 

Abilene

Wharton is a rather stiff banker name that becomes creative as a middle name choice for lovers of the novels of writer Edith. 

Wharton

A noble surname from northern England that has occasionally been used as a first name.

Isham

So identified with the hero of the Sir Walter Scott novel, it would be almost impossible for any boy to carry. 

Ivanhoe

Smooth and sleek one-syllable name, sometimes suggested for Sagittarius boys. 

Ives

If Hunter just isn't full enough for you, place name Huntington might be a better option.

Huntington

Memorable thanks to the Robert Redford character, Hubbell Gardiner, who captivated the young Barbra Streisand in the classic movie, "The Way We Were", Hubbell is an English surname, likely derived from the French Hubaut or the German Hubald. As such, it combines the elements hugu ("mind, heart") with bald ("bold"), and can therefore be interpreted to mean, rather poetically, "brave heart", or perhaps "bold mind", making this an interesting consideration for a spirited, independent boy.
 
More likely to appear as a surname (as in, baseball player Carl Hubbell, inventor Harvey Hubbell, and ice dancer Madison Hubbell), Hubbell has never made the US stats.

Hubbell

English names for boys dominate the popularity lists of the US, the UK, and other English-speaking countries, with William and James ranking highly in the US, and Jack, Oscar, and Charlie reigning in the UK.



Many English names for boys drawn from surnames are currently trending in the United States: Jackson, Cooper, Lincoln, Hunter, and Landon, for instance. And then there are English word names from Royal to Loyal that have become fashionable for baby boys.

 include Carter, Grayson, Julian, Mason, Parker, Robert, Sawyer, and Wyatt. Trending English names for boys include surname names such as Reeve and Miller and antique names such as Auberon and Anson.

Baby boy names of English origin popular in the UK

 include Oliver — a top name throughout the United Kingdom — Harry, Leo, and Alfie. The English name Tom ranks highly in France, while James is favored in The Netherlands and Oliver is popular in Spain.



Some of the straightforward boys’ names we think of as English — like the royal Charles, William, Henry, George, and Louis — all have non-English roots but may carry nicknames like Charlie or Bill that are distinctively English.

English Names for Boys rank highly throughout the English-speaking world, including William, James, Jack, Oscar, and Charlie. (Page 51)