Gender Neutral Middle Names

Can one prominent character affect the gender identity of a name? Definitely, as has supernatural bad girl Ridley Duchannes of the Beautiful Creatures series-turned-movie, played by the gorgeous Emmy Rossum.

With Ares trending upwards, this modern spelling is following in its footsteps, most notably in the UK where it climbed 200 places in a recent year. Also in the charts in France, it can be considered a variation of Ares, the Greek god of war, whose name means "ruin, bane", however, it that meaning doesn't appeal, it is considered a short for of Aristoteles, meaning "the best purpose".

The capital of England makes a solid and attractive twenty-first-century choice in the US where it is currently in the Top 1000. Given to nearly 1000 girls and 200 boys each year, it is a unisex option that has been in slow decline since its peak in 2013. Conjuring up images of Big Ben, red phone boxes, and the London Eye for some, but perhaps the rush hour commute and grey skies for others, London is far less popular in the UK and other English-speaking countries.

Dior has joined Chanel and Armani on the fashionista hit parade of names, appealing due to its designer quality, its succinct sound, and contemporary air. Nearly 400 baby girls were named Dior in the US last year.

Like somewhat more popular twin sister Reagan, this vibrant last-name-first Irish choice makes a strong, straightforward option.

More common -- when it was common -- with the Meyer spelling.

Oakland is a place name associated mainly with the city near San Francisco, pretty obviously meaning "oak land". Theoretically unisex but used mainly for boys, Oakland is one of a trending group of oak-related names, led by Oakley for both genders, with Oakland and Oaklen trending for boys while baby girls are more often given spellings Oaklynn and Oaklyn.

Kanye West and Kim Kardashian added this new word name to the lexicon when they chose it for their second son and fourth child in 2019. It is now 7 times more popular than it was then, given to 120 boys and 40 girls in a recent year.

Jupiter may be known as the father of all the gods, but it's baby girls who have claimed his name for their own. Mythological and celestial baby names are hot across the board, so Jupiter was bound to rise in popularity. But the reason it's currently mostly female in the US is thanks to its similarities to the trendy feminine name Juniper.

Trippy variation on Hayes, popular enough to have been given to 135 baby boys in the US last year.

Jennings is a common English surname that originated as a patronymic for the child of someone named Jen, a short form of John.

Rayne is the unique name used for one of the girl sextuplets on the Sweet Home TV show.

Popular with Muslim and African-American parents, this virtue name also fits in with the trendy i ending names being seen at the moment. It debuted on the US Top 1000 in 1996.

Updates Allison—which everyone will misunderstand it as. But it's definitely a fresh spin on the Ellie names, and a rising surname name choice for girls.

A melodic name, popular among the African-American community, where it joins sound-alikes Amari, Jamari, and Damari. It ultimately derives from the Arabic Qamar, meaning "moon", and is also used by Swahili speakers and those from Comoros and Somalia. It could also be considered a Greek place name, from a coastal village in Santorini.

Baylor's 2014 ascension to the US Top 1000 for boys is probably thanks to its fashionable two-syllable, r-ending, occupational surname feel. Think of it as Taylor with a twist.

Diamond sparkled all through the nineties--reaching as high as Number 150 in 1999. Although its shine has diminished quite a bit, it remains in use.

Azul is the Spanish word for "blue" and was first recorded as a baby name (for girls) in 1995. It's technically considered unisex today, although it is still more than three times as common as a feminine name.

Huntley was best known as Brinkley's fellow news anchor back in the 60s and 70s, while in the UK, it might still be linked to a high profile murder case. Nevertheless, this surname style choice feels tough, trendy, preppy, and outdoorsy at the same time and may fit in with the likes of Hunter, Wesley, and Bentley.

Lovers of the name Carter and the Kardashians method of baby naming have popularized this choice, one of many boys' names starting with K that began life as boys' names starting with C. Karter has been in the charts since 2005, riding on the success of the original Carter. Since 2014, Karter has been just inside the Top 200.