Last Names That Are Adorable First Names

Banks as a girls' name was brought into the lexicon by actress Hilary Duff and musician Matthew Koma, who chose it for their daughter, Banks Violet. As both a surname and a word name, Banks refers to financial establishments as well as river banks.

Billionaire Sumner Redstone, the nonagenarian owner of CBS and Viacom, practically has a monopoly on his first name — for now. But Hunter, Asher, and Ryder have ushered in a major vogue "-er" names, so it may only be a matter of time before parents discover this one.

Jacoby, a surname spin on Jacob shot up the charts in the middle of the 2000's, thanks largely to the popularity of Jacoby Ellsbury, the first Native American of Navajo descent in the Major Leagues, but has been dropping steadily since it peaked at Number 423 in 2008.

Known as a British royal family line as well as a style of architecture, this name has a forbidding solemnity; schoolmates might also confuse it with tutor.

Gibson is an undiscovered patronymic surname, with some appealing nicknames. It also brings to mind the popular brand of guitars.

One of the designer baby names -- Chanel and Gucci are others -- that have appeared in this era of branding everything from your purse to your offspring.

Corliss, eccentric yet well-established, has an independent and artistic air.

As Harrison is to Harry, Garrison is to Gary: both of the longer versions sound more modern and appealing. NPR's Prairie Home Companion's Garrison Keillor was born Gary.

Author Colson Whitehead introduced this surname-name to the lexicon, perfect for, well, a son or grandson of a Nicholas.

In the early eighties, Lindsay, in tandem with Courtney, approached the Top 10.

This first name was once a surname derived from Old English. Used quietly a century ago, the current fashion for two-syllable boy names ending in n makes this one a new hit.

Stylish surname name which can also be spelled Styles, as in One Direction band member Harry.

More unusual than Forest or Forrest, Field is a nature name that is simple, evocative, and fresh--sort of the male equivalent of Meadow.

Field and Fields are both relatively common surnames, noted bearers including department store owner Marshall Field, poet Eugene Field (Wynken, Blynken and Nod) and actress Sally. Those with the plural include W.C. Fields, cookie company founder Debbi, and entertainers Gracie and Kim Fields.

Hyde, of course, is most familiar as a surname -- as in Mr. Hyde, evil alter ego of Dr. Jeckyll. Unless Hyde is a family name or you have some other excellent reason for using it, we think you could do better.

Sutter is a new entry to the fashionable class of occupational surnames, brought to the fore by the hero of the 2013 indie film The Spectacular Now. More masculine than Sutton and more distinctive than Sawyer, Sutter might be a good choice for the child of a shoe designer or shoe lover.

This color name, spelled either Gray or Grey is rapidly catching on. Actress Jenny von Oy recently called her daughter Gray Audrey.

An unusual, energetic surname choice that would make a good Madison alternative. Madigan was a typical police detective series of the 1970s, starring Richard Widmark.

A surname with potential as a first — Ramsey was given to a little over 100 baby boys in 2022.

Schuyler, the original Dutch spelling, has been obscured by such phonetic upstarts as Skylar and (for boys) Skyler. We've even seen Skyla. While we can understand how the Schuyler version might cause confusion for English speakers, we can't help preferring it for its authenticity.

Eighties spin on megapopular Whitney that currently ranks higher than the original. Whitley fell out of the Top 1000 for several decades but resurfaced in 2018.