Three Letter Boy Names
Across 31 pages
of 31
Ark
English word name
"(in the Bible) the ship built by Noah to save his family and every animal from the Flood"
A spiritual word name — as in Noah's Ark and the Ark of the Covenant — that also fits the trend for short, punchy words like Oak and Ace. It's rare (used for 7 boys in 2020) but could sail far.
Joa
Finnish and Swedish diminutive of Joachim, Hebrew
"established by God"
A friendly nickname for Joachim, also used independently in Finland, Sweden, and the Netherlands, Joa would be pronounced as YO-ah in Finnish, but more like YOO-a in Swedish. Also appearing in the…
Xun
Chinese
"snow"
Among the few unisex names that start with X .
Boa
Latin
"snake"
Tag
English word name
"a label attached to something for identification"
Tag is unique word name introduced by the Sweet Home sextuplets. One of the boys is named Tag Bricker. There is also a character named Tag in Elin Hilderbrand's novel turned Netflix Series The…
Shy
English word name
"reserved, timid"
Not the most aspirational word names you could give to a child, although it does work as a nickname. Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's daughter Chicago is often called Chi, pronounced "shy."
Vuk
Serbian
"wolf"
This striking mini-name comes with a fierce animal edge — vuk is the Serbian word for "wolf".
God
English word name
"deity; supreme being"
We can get behind Divine, Saint, and even Messiah. But God? It's too loaded for us to recommend in good faith.
Maé
French/Breton form of Matthew
"gift of God"
A gallicized spelling of Mazhe, itself a Breton version of Matthew, which is currently popular for baby boys in France. In the English-speaking world, where the é accent is not always recognized,…
Žak
Slovene diminutive of Jakob
"supplanter"
One of three diminutives of Jakob in the Slovenian Top 100, in addition to Jaka and Jaša.
Pål
Pål is a Scandinavian male name, the Norwegian and Danish equivalent of the name Paul. Derived from the Latin name 'Paulus,' meaning 'small' or 'humble,' it has ancient roots dating back to Biblical…
Owl
Bird name
Professional surfer Craig Elmer Chapman went by the avian nickname Owl. We could see it working as a given name, a la Hawk and Dove.
Vid
Slavic variation of Vitus, Latin
"life"
In Slavic cultures, Saint Vitus is called Sveti Vid, making this a saintly appellation.
Roe
English, Scottish, Irish, Norwegian, or Korean surname
"roe deer; wise protector; son of Ruadh; red; clearing; ability"
In the US, the multicultural surname Roe is primarily associated with the landmark Supreme Court case Roe vs. Wade, which granted the federal right to abortion, though elsewhere it might be…
Mil
Diminutive of Emil, Latin
"rival"
Super-short names are popular with Dutch-speaking parents, and this shortened form has come a long way from the original Aemilianus. Mil is in the Top 100 in Belgium.
Ain
Arabic
"eye; precious"
Oda
Japanese
"great field"
Sef
Diminutive of Jozef, Dutch
"Jehovah increases"
Sef is a rising short form of Jozef in the Netherlands, where it outranks its parent form.
Zef
Dutch diminutive of Jozef
This zippy nickname would make an interesting update to Joseph.
Ché
Spanish, diminutive of JosÉ
Strongly associated with Cuban revolutionary Guevara.