Geezer Names for Girls
Blame it on Sidney. This quintessential grandpa name transformed into a cool, androgynous girl name in the 1980s, and (in its more popular Sydney spelling) still ranks among the Top 200 girl names in the US today.
Others have followed suit. Along with Sydney, more old-school boy names in the Top 500 for baby girls include Charlie, Blake, Stevie and Ari. And other vintage boy names like Percy, Frankie, Ollie, Clarke and Monroe are on the rise for girls as well.
While many of these names still sound stuffy or downright stodgy for boys, they have a cool, quirky charm when given to the less-expected gender. We're especially watching retro nickname names like Billie, Georgie, Teddie, Louie and Ray as the next cool gender-bending names to rise for baby girls.
Here are our picks of the best old man names for girls, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.
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- Emery
Origin:
English from GermanMeaning:
"industrious"Description:
The superpopularity of Emily and Emma has recently boosted the unisex Emery, especially since it became a celebrity baby name when it was chosen by Angie Harmon and Jason Sehorn.
- Scottie
Origin:
English nicknameMeaning:
"Scot"Description:
With its sassy, old school vibes, its cheerful, snappy sounds, and its fresh, unisex image, Scottie was one of the fastest rising names for girls in 2023.
- Billie
Origin:
English, diminutive of Wilhelmina, WilmaMeaning:
"resolute protection"Description:
Billie is a tomboy nickname name, part of the growing trend for using boyish nicknames for girls and now destined for stardom along with its most famous contemporary bearer, music sensation Billie Eilish.
- Charlie
Origin:
English diminutive of Charles or Charlotte, French from GermanMeaning:
"free man"Description:
Charlie is a friendly, boyish nickname name now used slightly more frequently for girls than boys, with over 2200 baby girls named Charlie last year versus about 2100 boys. That makes Charlie one of the most evenly-balanced and most popular unisex names around today.
- Arlo
Origin:
Irish, EnglishMeaning:
"between two hills"Description:
Arlo, an unexpectedly popular name for boys these days, is also finding new life as a girls' name. The first name Arlo may be rooted in the surname Arlow or the place name Aherlow, meaning "between two highlands". As a surname, it also has roots in a place name meaning "rocky hill".
- Ezra
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"help"Description:
Ezra is a biblical favorite for boys that's been making inroads into the girls' Top 1000 recently and continues to rise.
- Merritt
Origin:
English surname nameMeaning:
"boundary gate"Description:
Merritt has a long and distinguished history as a surname; the Merritt Parkway in Connecticut and the Merritt Building testify to that. But it wasn't until Emmy-winning actress Merritt Wever came along that we gave it much thought as a girls' name. And we aren't alone. It's grown tremendously in popularity since the premiere of Nurse Jackie, in which Wever played a key role. More than 100 baby girls a year are now named Merritt in the U.S.
- Monroe
Origin:
ScottishMeaning:
"mouth of the Roe river"Description:
Monroe is a presidential name which, thanks to the immortal beauty of Marilyn Monroe, is catching on fast for baby girls. Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon chose it for their twin daughter, honoring Marilyn Monroe. Their use of Monroe as a girls’ name did much to revive this Old Man name, a la Sydney, as a newly fashionable choice for girls.
- Remy
Origin:
French from LatinMeaning:
"oarsman"Description:
Remy is one of those rare names that combines ancient roots with modern sleekness. Boys outnumber girls with the classic Remy spelling, girls named Remi outnumber those named Remy. With either spelling and for either gender, it's a winning choice.
- Leo
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"lion"Description:
Leo is of course a very popular name for boys and an equally rare one for girls. But 28 baby girls were named Leo in the US last year, and as feminine leonine names such as Leonora and Leonia find more widespread popularity, Leo is popping up as an adorable short form for girls as well as boys.
- Ellis
Origin:
English surname derived from Elijah or Elias or WelshMeaning:
"benevolent"Description:
Ellis, a surname used sparingly as a first in the Wallace/Morris period, sounds new now for girls, as a gender-neutral alternative to Ella or Alice. It debuted in the US Top 1000 for girls in 2015.-- Ellis has always been in the Top 1000 for boys -- and seems to be headed straight up. One of the most popular gender-neutral names, currently there are two baby boys named Ellis for every girl.
- Andie
Origin:
Diminutive of Andrea, GreekMeaning:
"strong and manly"Description:
Boyish nicknames for girls are all the rage — just look at the success of Charlie, Frankie, Stevie, Billie, and Scottie in recent years. Andie has history as a nickname for Andrea, popularized by actress Andie Macdowell. This name has major cool girl appeal through Kate Hudson's portrayal of Andie Anderson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days and Molly Ringwald's of Andie Walsh in Pretty in Pink.
- James
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"supplanter"Description:
James for a girl? Believe it or not, this is one of the boy names for girls" gaining a lot of attention these days, since Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds shocked the world by choosing it for their eldest daughter in 2014 (after his late father).
- Lou
Origin:
Short form of LouiseMeaning:
"renowned warrior"Description:
Lou is usually a short form of Louise, Louisa, or Lucy in English-speaking countries, when Lou is used for girls at all. But in France and Germany, it's a fashionable choice all on its own, sure to gain even more widespread style credibility since Heidi Klum and Seal chose it for their daughter.
- Wynn
Origin:
WelshMeaning:
"fair, blessed"Description:
Wynn is an attractive Welsh name, originally male but now also used for girls outside of Wales. The authentic feminine version would be Gwen, which derives from the same very productive gwyn element, making it a relative of all Welsh names ending -wyn or -wen, as well as the Irish Fin- names.
- Drew
Origin:
Diminutive of AndrewMeaning:
"strong and manly"Description:
Drew is an elegant formerly male-only alternative to Andy that joined the stylishly upscale Paige-Brooke-Blair sorority, thanks largely to Drew Barrymore. Barrymore comes by her first name legitimately: it was the maiden name of her paternal great-grandmother, Georgiana 'Georgie' Drew Barrymore, one of many esteemed actors in her family history.
- Ari
Origin:
Diminutive of Ariel, HebrewMeaning:
"lion of God"Description:
In 2010, baby boys named Ari outnumbered baby girls 4 to 1; today, there are nearly equal numbers of boys and girls named Ari. And that's only counting the babies who receive Ari as a full name. Ari can also be short for not only Ariel but Aria, Arya, Ariana, and any other name starting with Ari. Ari entered the US Top 1000 for girls in 2016.
- Georgie
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"farmer"Description:
A spunky boyish diminutive in the vein of Frankie, Billie and Charlie, but far less popular in the US. Georgie could be a nickname for Georgia, Georgette, Georgina or Georgiana – or just use it as it is, as over 90 sets of American parents did in 2021.
- George
Origin:
English variation of Georgios, GreekMeaning:
"farmer"Description:
For girls, typically used as a nickname for names such as Georgia and Georgiana, although Orange is the New Black stars Samira Wiley and Lauren Morelli recently used it as a full name for their daughter George Elizabeth.
- Eli
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"ascended, uplifted, high"Description:
Eli is more often considered a Biblical classic for boys, with the name ranking in the Top 100 alongside Biblical choices for boys, like Elias, Elijah and Levi. Despite this, nearly 50 girls in the US were still called Eli last years. While some parents might have been following in the footsteps of those naming their daughters James, it could also be a spelling twist on familiar Ellie, or a short form of the Scandinavian names, Elisabet and Elin. Either way, with its similarity to Ellis, Ari, Elizabeth, Evie, Ivy, Riley, and Eden, there could be scope for Eli to be seen as a gender neutral option.