200+ Cool Middle Names

Asking for trouble.

Although this name literally means disaster, the use of Calamity as a descriptor of Martha Jane Cannery, aka Calamity Jane, was meant to signal that she was a good person to have in troubled times. Calamity Jane was well regarded as a frontierswoman and nurse, someone who was said to be extremely generous and compassionate to the sick and troubled.. Calamity's connection to the American West gives this a roguish name a sort of windswept charm about it. Indeed, the most controversial aspect of this name is its connection to the frontier wars that led to the dispossession of Native American peoples.

Ax makes a somewhat threatening short form of the popular Axel, given to more than 3000 baby boys last year. It can also be used on its own, though it usually isn't. There were, however, seven baby boys named Axe in the US in 2015.

This Italian boys name has started to be used on girls, with 251 girls in the US being given this appellation in 2021. Beware that the gender neutral names trend isn't international, and a female Gianni travelling through Europe is likely to be given a lot more grief. May we suggest the feminine Gianna or modern Giann as alternatives? For whatever gender, Gianni is one of the most popular Italian baby names around.

Whether it's an Asian surname-name or short for Channing, has a sound and feel that's both simple and stand-out.

Many African tribes have a tradition of naming children for the day or time they were born -- Friday, Afternoon -- a practice finding new life in the Western world as word names become more popular.

Queen has seen a revival in recent times, reaching its record high in 2018 with 280 births — it has remained steady since then. Previously, Queen saw a peak in the 1920s, but its origins go back even further than that. Queen was a noted name among enslaved people in America, along with other royal choices such as Duke, Squire, and Prince.

Supermodel Shalom Harlow glamorized this name, which is heard as a greeting every day in Israel.

Knowledge is a word name that's on an upward trend for boys, in 2021 hovering just below the Top 1000 in the US. And if Maverick, Legend, and Justice can be popular baby names, why not Knowledge? It's an important quality for any child to possess, via their name as well as their brain.

Tied to the bluesy southern city and to the world heritage cite in Egypt after which it was named, Memphis is a modern choice with ancient history. Currently significantly more popular for boys in the US, as a place name with sounds reminiscent of Paris, Meredith and Emma, it has plenty of potential as a unisex choice.

Depending on how you look at it, a variation of the word name Colt or an abbreviated form of Kolton.

An Irish classic for boys that has a streamlined, surnamey, unisex appeal in this spelling.

Has a dotty, antic feel via dotty, antic Auntie Mame.

Nico is a fun and lively nickname, full of charm, and suitable both as a full name and a short form. Nikko is a unique spelling that currently sits just outside of the US Top 1000.

This hip Parisian neighborhood name would make a delightful middle for a baby girl.

The Latin word for love. Amor has strong potential for the middle name position.

Spunky old vaudeville era nickname name suddenly sounds new again.

Panda, welcome to the baby name menagerie! Panda is an adorable animal name (after an adorable animal) that is sure to be both very rare and very cute. In Skins there was a character called Panda, which was short for Pandora. The name Panda comes from the Nepali word ponya meaning "bamboo eater".

Journalist Hiawatha Bray is a singular contemporary bearer of this name of a Native-American leader immortalized in a Longfellow poem.

Wildly optimistic -- and unrealistic -- choice.