Wonderful Word Names

A forward-looking word name.

Mason with a French accent. It first entered the US Top 1000 in 2012, and it will likely hang on for as long as its brother-in-spelling-variations, Mayson.

An ubercool and mysterious name, brought to you by director M. Night Shyamalan.

Heavily perfumed word name that peaked a few years ago.

Marvel, now a character name in The Hunger Games series, was a miracle name of yesterday, on the girls' Social Security list until 1941 and reaching a high of 487 at the turn of the last century, when Marva was also in style.

No one will ever forget it. But Remember as a name came over on the Mayflower, so it has deep history as well as modern potential.

Bamboo is a plant name that you might want to save for the zoo's name-the-panda contest. It was used for a starbaby in 2000, though, the rapper Big Boi.

This old-time name for a sofa would not be comfortable as a baby name.

The lead character of the Captain America movies, played by Chris Evans, is occasionally called Cap, short for "captain," but even he has a real name. (Steve Rogers, ICYC)

This cute-as-a-button name conjures playful lion and bear cubs rolling around in long grass. If cute baby names are what you're after, Cub should be on your list.

Glimmer is shimmery but a little too showy, as is Glitter, a character on a TV sitcom-- while Glimmer appears in The Hunger Games.

She'd better be. Merry is one of the classic names for Christmas babies.

Nice sound, but double meaning -- shady glen or shady character.

We are more than a bit surprised this name is as used as it is.

True has become an accepted first and middle name; Truth makes an even stronger statement. And with nearly 150 baby boys named Truth in the US in the most recent year counted, as many as were named Ross, the word name is edging up on the Top 1000.

If you use this for a boy, it had better be a family name, hidden away in the middle.

Gage we get. Cade we get. But Cage? Not really, and yet, it was given to about two dozen baby boys in one recent year.

A bright and optimistic middle name choice.

Extremely attractive color name chosen by some African-American families for its reference to the West African Ivory Coast; more commonly used for girls.

We've seen Haven take off as a nouveau girls' name; Harbor could follow in its wake.