Middle Names, Surnames, and Nicknames
By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 46 pages
of 46
Word name
New is a middle name name with meaning: Your baby, after all, is new to the world and you may hope will continue to approach life and experience as if everything is new and exciting.
Cool middle name possibility.
English word name
"powerful, solid"
Many parents are seeking a strong name--well there's no denying that Strong fits that bill.
Greek, English
"pale yellow"
Ochre is an exceedingly rare name, found only a few times since the nineteenth century, and not showing up in any current data. Yet it means much the same thing as popular Sienna (another clay…
Word name or medieval English form of Otto
If Story and Poet and Sonnet can be names that work as well for girls as for boys, why not Ode?
Word name or medieval English form of Otto, German
"a lyric poem; wealthy"
Ode could be part of the extended Otto/Otis family, or it might be a literary term, referring to an elaborate lyric poem, such as Keats's Ode to a Nightingale. .
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.
A very distinctive musical choice, but be aware that many people will think you've named your child Oprah.
Hawaiian
"crescent bay or garland valley"
An appealing Hawaiian name which belongs to a town, river and bay on Kauaʻi island in Hawaii. The two possible meanings of the name, "crescent bay" or "garland (lei) valley" both describe the beauty…
Along the same lines as Fable or Madrigal, Parable is a cute choice for literary families. It might also be considered as a pseudo-biblical name, given the fame of the Biblical parables.
A paradox is a statement that while seeming true contradicts itself. With the less-than-pleasant "Doxy" as an obvious nickname, Paradox is perhaps a better name for a cat than a baby.
French word name
"wharf"
A name that looks intriguing and masculine on paper, but is, unfortunately, a homonym for a girl's name.
"pointed top of the mountain; highest point of achievement"
An ambitious geographical name, associated with mountains and success. In the UK, however, this is a slang term, meaning "bad, disappointing".
English, word name
As the former stage name of TLC founder Perri Reid and the name of the youngest member of the animated Flintstones clan, it's got some pop culture cache. But it'll be too cutesy by half for most…
Peerless Price may be a football great, but his name would exert undue pressure. Substitute idea: Peer.
Far-fetched, but friends can always call him Phil.
"firearm"
While Pistol might be more positively spun as a word name for an enterprising and spirited person, it's the small, handheld firearm that most people will think of first. As such, it joins the ranks…
"fiream"
A contemporary choice, Pistol entered the stats in the US back in 2010 for boys and then in 2013 for girls too. Given to around 80 babies throughout the 2010s, it has fallen out of favor in the…
An admirable quality to impart; Pleasant was used by Charles Dickens in Our Mutual Friend and in modern times is known via American Girl dolls creator Pleasant Rowland.
Wishful thinking.
