350+ Best Unique Baby Names

Granville

Granville is a distinguished English place name and surname that originated from the Norman-French "grande ville," meaning "large town." Dating back to medieval times, it gained usage as a given name…

Gregor

Scottish form of Gregory

"vigilant, a watchman"

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…

Griff

Griff is a masculine name with Welsh origins, functioning both as a standalone name and as a diminutive of Griffin or Griffith. The name derives from the Welsh 'Gruffydd,' meaning 'strong lord' or…

Griffith

Welsh

"strong lord"

A classic Welsh name, softer than Griffin and friendlier to spell than Gruffudd - that hasn't had as much love as it deserves elsewhere. Namesakes range from medieval kings to the philanthropist…

Guthrie

Scottish

"windy place"

Guthrie, one of the most attractive Scottish names that's also a surname, has a particularly romantic, windswept aura, with a touch of the buckaroo thrown in. Guthrie's folkie quality is tied to the…

Hadley

English

"heathery field"

Hemingway readers will recognize this as the name of Papa's first wife (and, eventually, actress Mariel's grandmother). But in Victorian times, Hadley and Hedley were actually more popular for boys.

Hale

English

"someone who lives in a hollow; strong and hearty"

This name projects a sense of well-being, as in "hale and hearty", while also having a nature-adjacent meaning, referring to someone who lives near a hollow, a nook, or a remote area of land. Rhyming…

Hamish

Scottish variation of James

"supplanter"

Just as Seamus/Seumus is Irish for James, Hamish is the Scottish form — one that's not often used here, but still redolent of Olde Scotland. If you're ready to go further than Duncan and Malcolm, out…

Hampus

German

"jumping"

Hampus is a European name virtually unheard of in the US, a form of Hampo and Hampel. It may also be a nickname for Johannes, the German form of John.

Hanzo

Japanese

Heard most frequently in 18th century Japan, Hanzo is a rarity in modern culture. Hattori Hanzo was a legendary samurai of the Sengoku Era. A modern day namesake might be Hanzo Shimada, from the…

Haroun

Arabic variation of Aaron

"exalted, high"

This common Arabic name is related to Aaron, but feels far more distinctive in the US. Haroun Khalifa is the protagonist of Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories .

Haskell

English from Norse, Hebrew

"God's helmet; God strengthens"

Haskell has two separate forms of origin, the first being from the Ancient Norse given name Ásketill. The Normans converted Ásketill to Aschetil, then the English transformed Aschetil into Haskell,…

Hastings

English

English place name derived from the Anglo-Norman personal name Hasten or Haesta, made famous by the battle of 1066.

Hawthorn

Spelling variation of Hawthorne

The version with the e at the end relates to novelist Nathaniel, so that may be the one most parents attracted to this unusual name would choose. Hawthorn nudges it toward the nature category:…

Heathcliff

English

"cliff near a heath"

Heathcliff is the name of the original passionate macho hero of Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights , and also of the cartoon cat. It was chosen by fashionista Lucy Sykes for her son, and inspired the…

Helio

Spanish

"the sun"

More familiar to English speakers in the Italian Elio form.

Helix

English word name

"a curve in three-dimensional space"

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

Heron

Nature name or Greek

"hero"

Heron may feel like a very usable nature name -- the heron is a long-legged wading bird -- but it was also the name of a 1st century Greek inventor and of an Egyptian saint. Highly unusual yet easy…