Athletic Baby Names

Kodai Senga, a Japanese professional baseball player and pitcher for the New York Mets, introduced this one to the US audience. Kodai, with its similarity to the more familar Koda and Kai, just might catch on here.

Kodai

This name has two distinctive associations: the Southwestern natural formation of a gully or stream, and the Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo.

Arroyo

Although Ashanti is a much better known name via the female hip-hop singer, Asante is also an appealing way to honor Asante or Ashanti heritage. It's the name of a people and language based in Ghana.

Asante

Most parents would prefer BRADLEY or BRADFORD to get to eternally cool nickname BRAD--unless they wanted to honor cricket legend Donald Bradman, considered the greatest batsman of all time.

Bradman

Noted bearers of this surname include a metaphysical poet, a Nobel Prize winner, and a baseball Hall of Famer, so there's plenty of hero-name inspiration. 

Carew

This surname related to Clement is strongly associated with Major League pitcher Roger Clemens, winner of more Cy Young awards than any other pitcher in baseball history, and has a softer sound than Clement. Some variations are Clemen, Clementio, Clemention, and Clemons.

Clemens

In keeping with other short names like Poe and Bo, Coe is a surname that could easily move into first place.  It has a sports hero factor as well, in Olympic runner Sebastian Coe — who later became a Member of Parliament.

If you're a movie fan or a sports fan, you might be attracted to this name, via the film "Donnie Darko" or the Serbian-born basketball star Darko Milicic.  It is kind of dark, though.

Darko

This unusual name belonging to three generations of Deltha Lee O'Neals, the third being a football cornerback for the New England Patriots, could equally--or better--be used for a girl.

Deltha

With Galway and Ireland in play as names (not to mention Shannon and Kerry), there's no reason this one can't work, too. 

Dublin

Durant's meaning signifies staying power, a good quality to impart to your child. Notables with the surname Durant include Pulitzer Prize-winning authors Will and Ariel Durant, most famous for their eleven-volume The Story of Civilization, and William Crappo Durant, co-founder of General Motors and Chevrolet.

Durant

A word that's been used, very infrequently, as a name for hundreds of years. Interesting sound and meaning. 

Early

A surname very rarely heard as a first, associated with Hall of Fame basketball star Patrick Ewing and, in the 1980s, the oil-rich Ewing family on the nighttime soap, "Dallas"

Ewing

An old surname with an intriguing sound an uncertain origin, although it may derive from a French word for "lantern" – perhaps referring originally to one who made or lit lanterns.

Faldo

Bird name possibility, rarer than Lark and Wren but with the same short, punchy feel.

Only five baby girls were named Finch in the most recent year, and four times as many baby boys.

Finch

Unusual alternative to Fisher with a brisker surname appeal. 

Fisk

Occasionally used in the African-American community to honor Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey, known as "Emperor of the Kingdom of Africa," though his first name is more frequently chosen. Another possible namesake is baseball player Steve Garvey. Garvey sounds more modern than Harvey. 
 
Variations include Garrvey, Garrvie, Garvie, and Garvy.

Garvey

Gehrig might have been used as a sports hero name honoring legendary baseball Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, but the association with the disease he gave his name to makes it a no-no.

Gehrig

The connection to a knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend gives this name a hint of nobility.  Geraint Thomas was a Welsh cyclist who competed in the 2008 Olympics.

Geraint

Ichiro is a good classic choice for the first boy in a Japanese family. 

Ichiro

If you're a sports fan, you may find baby name inspiration while watching a football game or a tennis match.  Athletic baby names might be the right style for youl

While the legendary stars of sports history usually had 

 like Joe and Jimmy and Michael and Mickey (not to mention Billie Jean), some of the newer luminaries, as well as the surnames of classic athletes, offer options for baby names that go beyond the perimeters of that limited playing field. Names such as Beckham and Iker in particular have really taken off.

include Brady, Colt, Gabriella, Kyrie, Mia, Palmer, and Serena. Rare names with strong ties to illustrious athletes include Gehrig, Magic, Usain, and Wilt.

An athletic baby name may not imbue your child with sports skills, but it can give him or her a hero to look up to. If you love sports, consider using an athletic baby name as a first or middle name for your child.

Athletic baby names relate to sports, athletes, and games, with athlete names for baby boys and baby girls, with meanings, origins, and popularity. (Page 9)