350+ Best Unique Baby Names

William was such a popular name, thanks to the Conquerer, in early England that it gave rise to a range of nicknames, including the distinctly Scottish Wilkie. Heard mostly as a surname these days, it's the middle name of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick's son James and the first name of writer Collins. While Wilkie could make an adorable short form for a little boy, we'd recommend a more substantial full name such as, well, William.

The name of the second-biggest (and third-most populous) island in Hawaii was one of the fastest-rising boys' names of 2017. A major factor was surely Dwayne Johnson's character in Moana, the Polynesian demigod named Maui, a mythological trickster who slowed the sun to create the days. (It fell back to normal levels in the following years.)

Alabama is a hot southern place-name, picking up from Georgia and Savannah. This is not a geographical name come lately, though--there have been girls named Alabama dating back well over a century.

Rarely used surname, associated with humorous poet Ogden Nash.

Brenner is an occupational surname for both a charcoal burner and a distiller of spirits. One of the least used of occupational surnames, it has that 'er' ending that definitely adds to its stylishness; a possible successor to Brendan. 

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

Zuleika is a high-wire act of a name that might appeal to the intrepid baby namer, Like most 'Z'-starting girls' names, it projects a cool, strong aura, as exemplified by the character in Max Beerbohm's satirical 1910 novel, Zuleika Dobson, a heroine so gorgeous that the entire student body of Oxford University committed collective suicide at the sight of her.

Viridiana is a frillier version of the medieval name Viridis, meaning green. Viridiana briefly made it into the top 1000 in the US in the 1990s.

Most commonly associated with artist M.C. Escher, Escher makes a great hero name that would fit in nicely with the surname names of today.

If Lulu and Lula and Lou all work for girls, why not Louie? We're predicting a rise for baby girls in the wake of all the Lou names trending.

An English family name used a few generations ago as an Anglicization of Moses, but hardly heard since th 1950s.

This evocative name of a dramatic tropical Indian fig tree is ready to move west.

The attractive actress Vivica A. Fox has done a lot to add this version of the name into the mix.

An English surname originally given to the illegitimate sons of a monarch. Might be a nice middle name choice to honor an ancestral Roy.

Both a place name and a masculine given name in the Old Testament.

Ezra is a Biblical name that is being rediscovered, which means its variation Ezri can't be far behind. Ezri is one of the up-and-coming unisex names starting with E, with the gender divide surprisingly running five to one in favor of girls.

Pronounced to rhyme with nice, Thijs is a popular Dutch name short for that country's form of Matthew. Matt Lauer's half-Dutch son is called Thijs.

Softer and more romantic than Octavia, this is a name once used when it wasn't uncommon for families to have eight children. A possible substitute for the epidemically popular Olivia.