Franz is the German equivalent to Francis, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a Franz outside of countries with Germanic origins. In America the name is often associated with celebrated author Franz Kafka, who was born in Prague.

Actor Farley Granger set it in motion, now could be a gentler alternative to Harley.

A scientific word name that would work wonderfully as a given name, given its similarity to Felix.

Musical term with a lot of energy.

Subtract the last two letters of Arnold, and you're left with a much more modern-sounding name. Arno is also the name of the main river in Florence, upon which sits the famed Ponte Vecchio. The Italian river name means "flowing water".

Name of the last king of Egypt.

The iconic Gone With the Wind star Clark's surname was brought into the first-name mix when Weeds' Kevin Nealon picked it for his son. Gable makes a strong and unusual possibility, a rhyming cousin to Abel and Mabel.

An Irish surname possibility for those who like Daley, Royal, Dougal, and Dolan, though it may sound too much like doily to catch on for modern boys. Nevertheless, it was fairly well used in the 20th century, popular in the 30s, 40s, and 50s when it reached the Top 200 at one point.

Two prominent literary namesakes make Gregor a somewhat risky choice. On the highbrow side, there's Gregor Samsa, the Kafka character who woke up one day to find himself turned into a cockroach. And then there's Gregor Clegane, one of the most feared and purely evil characters in the world of Game of Thrones.

Alive thanks to Ponderosa papa Greene and SNL creator Michaels, both from Canada, where the name is much more popular.

Lumen is a Latin word meaning "light", and the term used for the measurement of light output (making it an attractive choice for science-buffs).

Tao is the Chinese word for the underlying harmony of the universe, combining both yin and yang. Extreme kayaker Tao Berman made this one of the spiritual names prime for adoption, and more recently, it has appeared in hit graphic novel and TV series, Heartstopper. Tao rhymes with cow.

A warm and cuddly nickname name, although he famously "kissed the girls and made them cry" in the old nursery rhyme.

A surprisingly wearable floral name for a boy.

A rare unisex word/virtue name that is currently given to around 10 babies of each gender per year in the US. It could make for an unexpected route to bright, easygoing nickname Sol (or trendy nickname Ace).

Part of the next generation of preppy H-beginning surnames. Once Harrison, Hudson, and Holden are no longer fresh, expect to hear more little boys being called Hughes, Hutch, and Henderson on the playground.

One of the jewel names in use a hundred years ago, for both boys and girls, due for revival along with sisters Ruby and Pearl. But interestingly, Garnet means pomegranate, the fruit who shares a deep red color with the jewel.

Until recently, Vernon and its short form Vern seemed like grandpa names not ready for revival, but now we can see it happening. Never the popular, Vern works particularly well as a middle name.

Plausible word name, denoting strength and stability, currently given to a small handful of boys in the US each year.

Creative gem perfect for an architect's son, in tribute to modern Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen.