By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 334 pages
of 334
English
"rush town"
Originally derived from an English surname, given to someone who lived in a town or settlement near a marsh where grass-like rush plants grew, Ruston feels similar in style to Ashton or Reed, but…
Diminutive of William, German
"resolute protection"
A common surname that was popular as a given name in the late 19th and early 20th century, Willis dropped off the US Top 1000 back in the early 90s, just as alternative William diminutive, Liam,…
Arabic
"growth and progress"
Closely associated with French soccer star Zinedine Zidane, who became the manager of Real Madrid after retiring from play. One of the Arabic names for boys with modern rather than Quranic origins.
Caisen is a modern masculine name with possible Irish or American origins. It may be a variation of 'Cason' or 'Casey,' or potentially derived from the Irish surname 'Cassin.' The name has a…
Daylan is a modern masculine name with multiple possible origins. It may be a variant of Dylan, the Welsh name meaning 'son of the sea,' or a creative spelling of Declan, an Irish name.…
Derian is a masculine name with multiple possible origins. It may be a variant of Darian or Darien, which derive from the ancient Persian name of a historical city. Alternatively, it could be related…
Efraim is a variation of Ephraim, a biblical name of Hebrew origin meaning "fruitful" or "productive." In the Old Testament, Ephraim was the second son of Joseph and founded one of the twelve tribes…
Word name
Like Silver, a shimmering metallic color name, that may lean too dazzling for some, but more grounded for others, thanks to its similarity of Alden, Auden, Elden and Gordon. Given to 100 babies in a…
Jahlil is a masculine name with possible connections to Arabic naming traditions, though it has developed its own usage patterns in the United States. It may relate to the Arabic name 'Jalil' (جليل)…
Jeshua is a masculine name with ancient Hebrew origins, representing an earlier form of the name Jesus. Derived from 'Yeshua,' it means 'God is salvation' or 'God saves.' This name appears in…
Diminutive of Alessandro, Italian
"defending men"
Lengthy, romantic Alessandro gives us the friendly and casual nickname Sandro, which works just as well as an independent name. It’s a popular international name, having ranked in Italy, France,…
Waylan is a masculine name that represents a modern spelling variant of Waylon, which itself originated as an English surname derived from 'way' and 'land,' suggesting land by the road. This…
Weslee is a modern spelling variation of Wesley, a masculine name with English origins meaning "western meadow" or "western clearing." This contemporary spelling gives the traditional name a fresh…
Dutch variation of William
"resolute protector"
Common in Holland, the appealing Willem (as in de Kooning and Dafoe) makes William fresh and distinctive.
Antwan is primarily a masculine name that developed as an American phonetic respelling of the French name Antoine, which itself derives from the Roman name Antonius (of uncertain Etruscan origin).…
Dayvon is a masculine given name that appears to be a variant spelling of Devon or Devin, with the distinctive 'Day-' beginning potentially influenced by names like Damon or Daymond. Devon originally…
Irish and Scottish
"fair-haired hero"
Finlay is a Scottish royal name: it belonged to Macbeth's father, Finlay MacRory--or Findlaech mac Ruaidri--that has a bit of a split personality. It has two acceptable spellings--Finlay and Finley,…
Heitor is a Portuguese and Spanish form of the ancient Greek name Hector. In Greek mythology, Hector was a Trojan prince and the greatest fighter for Troy in the Trojan War, symbolizing courage and…
Greek, Hebrew
"God enlightens"
The Greek form of the Hebrew Jair, Jairus appears in the Bible as the father of a girl resurrected by Jesus. Though it is the original, its Spanish variation Jairo is more popular.
"friend"
Kahlil, spelled in various ways, was first brought into the American consciousness by the poet Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet.
