Names That Mean Battle

The name of an ancient Irish saint is in the contemporary Irish Top 50. While it's one of the rare Irish names for boys that hasn't immigrated to the U.S., it may follow brothers Aidan and Declan to our shores. The t is not pronounced.

When it's spelled with two dots over the 'u' in German, Gunther is pronounced GUWN-ter, but it has a much softer sound when the 'h' is voiced by English-speakers, as it was, for example, for the name of a character in Friends.

Rarely heard, and all too likely to be confused with Kevin.

Variant of Brunhild, still clad in heavy armor. Though the heroine Brunhilda of Quentin Tarantino's recent film Django Unchained may have given this version of the name new appeal.

Casey-with-a-K never quite reached the heights of the original, but it broke the Top 500 for boys in the late '80s and early '90s.

Actor Mark Ruffalo honed this surname down to its basics when he chose it for his son. A more usable expansion might be the Irish surname Keenan/Keenen.

St Cadoc was an early Welsh churchman, who gave his name to several villages in Wales, and according to his Life knew King Arthur. Less popular than other C__C names like Cormac and Cedric, Cadoc would be an almost unique, but easy-to-pronouce choice.

Cadell is a surname that is unlikely to win many supporters, except perhaps from parents looking for an alternative to Caden. But while Cadell is more distinctive, that L ending is weaker and less appealing than Caden's strong N.

A rare Welsh name with a wonderful meaning, Cadfael is the name of the detective monk character in Ellis Peters' medieval murder mysteries. It's usually pronounced CAD-vyle in Welsh, although Peters intended the character's name to be pronounced CAD-vel.

This surname borne by several early Welsh leaders has a lot of energy.

Hervé was a legendary French saint, patron of the blind, who performed many miracles -- it's a lot more sophisticated than the English Harvey.

One of the rare English surname names originally derived from a female given name: Eoforhild (Everild), meaning "boar battle". Also spelled Averill, it's an extremely rare choice today, but shares sounds with fashionable Ava and Avery.

Cadan is an attractive Cornish name that rhymes with Madden. Despite its modern appearance and the recent history of many Cornish names, Cadan is actually one of the older Cornish names in use today.

Pronounced klo-TEELD, this name is well used in France, but rarely heard here; it has a chic and sophisticated air.

Swam into style and quickly out again, on Chad's fish- er, coat-tails.

Truncated form of Marylouise.

This name, more often spelled Ottoline, is curiously appealing, in a hoop-skirted, wasp-waisted way; heard more often in novels than real life, though that is showing some signs of change.

Anglicized form of Cadoc, a Welsh saint's name.

Seventies comic-book-heroine-style name.

Averill is an ancient name, most properly spelled Averil, that has a Boston Brahmin air – probably due to the image of statesman Averill Harriman. It's of the rare English surname names that originally derived from a female given name: Eoforhild (Everild), meaning "boar battle".