Three Letter Boy Names

A unisex Chinese and Vietnamese with an appealingly simple, vowel-rich spelling.

Though rarely heard now, Coy has been around for a century and was not an uncommon name a hundred years ago. There have been a couple of NFL players named Coy, Coy Bowles is in the Zac Brown band, and of course there was Coy Duke in The Dukes of Hazzard. Due to the flirty connotations of the word "coy", McCoy is a more popular and recommended choice today.

For older generations this still summons silent horror star Chaney; for others it's a pleasant if slight nickname name.

Though the variation Pius is too, well, popeish, Pio might work for an ordinary boy.

Cameron is still more popular as a boy's name than a girls and this simple, snappy short form works well for either sex.

Tau, rhyming with cow, is a simple straightforward name with roots in two languages and cultures, the Kaurna language spoken by indigenous Australian people or the African Tswana language, a Bantu language spoken by five million people.

A cutesy nickname — identical sounding to the more substantial Rue and Roux.

As with all Japanese names, the meaning of Kin changes depending on which kanji are used.

A small but mighty modern Hebrew name, Rom ranks in Israel's Top 100.

Russian-born actor Yul (christened Yuliy) Brynner gives this short name a strong, steely image.

An interesting and attractive bicultural choice--the Hebrew version is used for babies born in spring, when turtledoves arrive--especially as a middle.

A boy with this name is certain to be bombarded with "What's up, doc?" every day of his life. Even Doctor would be preferable.

Also a synonym for the Hebrew month of Iyar, which usuually falls in May, would work and play well with others like Zev and Lev.

Better to stick with the Neil spelling in the US, where the word "nil" also means "zero." But this is a Top Ten name in Catalonia.

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky named their baby boy RZA, inspired by the frontman of the Wu-Tang Clan. RZA is the stage name of Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, who has produced the most records for the hip hop group.

We've got Saint, we've got King, we've got Prince Duke Bishop Deacon and Messiah. So why not Sir? The name of Beyonce and Jay-Z's newborn son, Sir is an honorific and a word name that fits right in with current trends. And it does guarantee your son will be addressed with respect, at least nominally.

Pronounced hwee, this common Vietnamese name would be difficult to translate to an English-speaking culture.

Peaked in the 1940s, but still an amiable classic, a la Joe and Tom -- though rarely used on its own.