Ozymandias

Percy Bysshe Shelley got the name for one of his most famous poems -- a sonnet about the insignificance of man's labors in the vastness of time -- from the Greek name for Ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II.

Ozymandias has seldom been used as a first name for baby boys, and it's not hard to see why. Five ponderous syllables are a lot to bear. But literary names and ancient names are both hot categories, and Oz is quickly becoming trendy, so we can easily imagine some parents gravitating toward this impressive-sounding name.

TV fans may recognize Ozymandias as the title of the third-to-last episode of "Breaking Bad," which many consider the best of the entire series.

Pronounced oz-ee-MAN-dee-us.

As of October 2026, Ozymandias ranked #13389 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #8100 in 2023.