Boy Names Lists · Nameberry Favorites
By Sophie Kihm · Updated September 2026
Across 20 pages
of 20
Latin
"horn"
Cornelius, the New Testament name of a third century Pope and saint, is one of those venerable Latin names on the edge of consideration, despite the corny nickname alert. Cornelius has some magical…
Diminutive of Huckleberry, word name
Though forever tied to Huck, short for Huckleberry, Finn, this is an undeniably cute short form that may have some life as part of the hipster taste for names like Duke and Bix.
Greek
"flax"
Can Linus lose its metaphorical security blanket and move from the Peanuts page onto the birth certificate? We think it has enough charm and other positive elements going for it for the answer to be…
American variation of Azariah or Azhari, Hebrew, Malay
"helped by God; shining, brilliant"
Azari is a rising name for both sexes, hitting a bunch of style trends at once — three syllables, strong Z, and an I ending. It's technically an invented name, likely inspired by the fashionable…
English
"elder tree forest"
The "el-" sound is red-hot these days, and a myriad of place names and surnames give this name a wealth of possible namesakes. The main drawback is its kinship to the name of the hero of the Legally…
Japanese
"beauty, flow, lapis lazuli"
While Rumi has received attention in the contemporary US as the name of Beyonce and Jay-Z's young daughter, it's most famously the name of a (male)13th century Muslim mystic and poet. The most famous…
Italian, English, Greek
"order, beauty, universe"
With a touch of celestial power, a hint of clunky charm, and the totally cool -o ending, Cosmo may well be finally shaking itself free of both the Seinfeld association (which made it a punchline of a…
Irish
"slender"
Cael is the name of the angel of the zodiac sign of Cancer and also of a warrior of Irish mythology. Its ascendance to the Top 1000 over the past decade probably has to do with its similarity to Cale…
Hebrew
"I have a light"
Lior is a unisex name frequently heard in Israel, capturing the popular light theme through its meaning. For English speakers, the one down side is possible pronunciation confusion with "liar,"…
Norwegian place name, Old Norse
"meadow at the foot of a hill"
Oslo, the capital city of Norway, makes for an intriguing new place name, especially with its bookended O's, as in Otto and leads to cool nickname Ozzie. One Berry has already used it and we predict…
Word name
Words are not always easy to translate into baby names , but the implications of being straight and swift lend this one great potential as a name. It also has the popular o -sound ending, which…
German
"brave people"
An aristocratic and stately Germanic route to the popular Leo, Leopold is a royal name: Queen Victoria used it to honor a favorite uncle, King Leopold I of Belgium. These days, this royal tie may be…
"my light"
Friendly but substantial.
Male variation of Calixta or Latin
"chalice"
Calix is once-obscure name that is starting to see some use in the US, where 62 baby boys were named Calix in 2024. An indirect influence is the actress Calista Flockhart, who introduced Americans to…
"royal"
Although Greek in origin--in the fourth century, a bishop by that name established the principles of the Greek Orthodox Church--Basil for years took on the aura of aquiline-nosed upper-class…
"Yahweh is his brother"
A simple and streamlined Biblical name, Joah borne by several figures in the Old Testament. Meaning "Yahweh is his brother" or "brother of God", it could be an unexpected way to honor a family Joe or…
English; French, from Polish
"destroyer of peace"
Casimir, a traditional name of Polish kings, could do quite well these days as we see the rise of Caspian, Cassius, Castiel, et. al. Like Leopold and Laszlo, Casimir is strong and worth considering…
Diminutive of Alfred, English
"wise counselor"
Alfie is a Top 20 name throughout the British Isles, where retro nickname names are mega-popular, but it hasn't really been picked up in the US yet, given to around 70 boys in a recent year.…
"eighth"
Octavius, which was at one time used for the eighth child in a family, has the worn leather patina of all the ancient Roman names now up for reconsideration. As a Roman family name, it derives from…
"peaceful"
Pax, one of the variations of names meaning peace that are newly popular in these less-than-peaceful times, got a lot of publicity when chosen by Brad & Angelina for their Vietnamese-born son.…
