Updated October 2026
Across 5 pages
of 5
Greek mythology name
"the darkness of the night"
Name of the legendary ancient Greek poet and musician — whose music was so beautiful it made trees dance and rivers stop to listen — would provide a child with a challenging but indelible identity.
Musical name
Long associated with jazz great Ornette Coleman, this name's main problem is that almost all other ette-ending names -- from Annette to Paulette -- are unequivocally feminine.
Spanish
"gold"
Rare, with a gleaming, golden image.
Italian variation of Orson
"bearlike"
Orson is being rediscovered and Orsino is every bit as attractive.
Teutonic
"divine creator"
This name seems to foresee a future CFO. Not a bad thing. Osgood Perkins is the name of both the father and son of actor Anthony. Oz is the enlivening nickname.
English
"working cattle"
Animal names are booming, but this is one that's never been used — although Boaz, which means "ox" in Hebrew, is starting to see more use. With its connotations of strength, teamwork and…
Hebrew
"my hearing"
This Old Testament name borne by a grandson of Jacob would not rate high in the classroom.
Latin, meaning unknown
Ovid is the English form of the Roman family name Ovidius, which possibly comes from the word for sheep. It is the usual English name for the first-century poet Publius Ovidius Naso.
Irish mythology name, variation of Angus
"one choice"
Oengus is the old Irish form of the name most commonly found in the modern world as Angus, typically Scottish. In Irish mythology, Oengus is the god of youth, love, and poetry.
Irish surname
"descendant of Brian"
The use of O-prefixes could create the next wave of Irish inflected names, offering an innovative way of honoring a relative with a behind the times moniker.
Romanian variation of Oliver
As both Oliver and Olivia grow in popularity throughout the English-speaking world, parents may seek variations that are the same-but-different and Olivian is one such choice. Attractive and easy to…
Word name or medieval English form of Otto, German
"a lyric poem; wealthy"
Ode could be part of the extended Otto/Otis family, or it might be a literary term, referring to an elaborate lyric poem, such as Keats's Ode to a Nightingale. .
Greek, English
"pale yellow"
Ochre is an exceedingly rare name, found only a few times since the nineteenth century, and not showing up in any current data. Yet it means much the same thing as popular Sienna (another clay…
Biblical place name and masculine given name in the Old Testament.
English from Latin
"garden yard"
Finnish
"bear"
A common animal name in Finland, it could work as an alternative to Otto or Otis.
"young man"
Cosmo's Finnish cousin.
Aragonese variation of Horatio
"hour, time"
The variation of Horatio used in Aragon, Spain.
"one that is old"
Nope, not Goldie. Oldie, as in, "an oldie but a goody" or "oldies music". Despite these neutral-to-positive associations, Oldie still has a musty, fusty quality. Actress Kelli Giddish named her son…
Word name or spelling variation of Om, Sanskrit
"creation"
Ohm, chosen by actress Hilary Swank for her son, twin of sister Aya, is a unit of electrical resistance named for 19th-century physicist Georg Ohm. It may also be a respelling of Om, the sacred sound…