To Americans, a quintessential British name, introduced to the U.S. public by suave journalist/PBS Masterpiece Theater host Alastair Cook. Sometimes used in the U.S. by parents with Scottish heritage.

Alastair

Anderson shot up quite a bit on the <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names">popular names</a> list in the 2000's, no doubt in large part due to the prominence of white-haired cable newsman Anderson Cooper. Perhaps surprisingly though, Anderson was even higher on the list in 1880. Actress Edie Falco named her son Anderson in 2005. Though there haven't been many first-named Anderson namesakes, there have been countless notables bearing the surname, including Hans Christian, Marian, Maxwell, Sherwood, Gillian, Laurie, and Pamela.

Anderson

This form and its German variant Augusten are moving up fast as the preferred long forms of the trendy Gus.

Augustin

Since Aurelius was given the supermodel seal of approval by Elle Macpherson, it has joined Augustus as an ancient Roman name that feels usable today. Slightly mystical and magical, Aurelius is grounded by its similarity to rising stars Aurora, Aurelia, and Atticus, and its golden aura is certainly appealing. 
 In ancient Roman history, the name is associated with Marcus Aurelius, a Roman Emperor from 161 to 180 AD, the last of the so-called "Five Good Emperors." He is also considered one of the most important Stoic philosophers. He granted his name en masse to citizens of the empire who didn’t have one, making Aurelius a common and default nomen (family name) towards the later years of the empire.
 
Rarely used in the US before the 2000s, Aurelius began to climb in 2010 - perhaps because model Elle Macpherson was back on the runway and hosting Britain and Ireland's Next Top Model and parents were reminded on her son's name, or possibly because it featured in the popular series, The Hunger Games. 
 
In 2023, it was given to 160 boys, meaning it has nearly doubled in use since 2021. While absent from any "official" stats, it is a Berry favorite, ranking highly on the <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names/nameberry/boys">Nameberry Top Boy Names List</a>.

Aurelius

Parents who like Ben and Benjamin but find those forms too popular sometimes consider Benedict as a more distinctive choice. Unlike the Old Testament Benjamin, Benedict is the name of the saint who formed the Benedictine Order and of fifteen popes,including a recent one. 
 Shakespeare used a variant form--Benedick--for the character in Much Ado About Nothing. Other options are Bennett and Benno.
Benedict Cumberbatch is a rising British stage, film and TV actor, who has been seen as Stephen Hawking, William Pitt, Dr. Frankenstein, Frankenstein's monster, and currently as Sherlock Holmes in the BBC series.
 Just one caveat: There is the link to that infamous traitor Benedict Arnold.

Benedict

Bernhard

Branigan, also spelled Branagan or Brannigan, is an Irish name full of energy and cheer. It was the title of a 1975 John Wayne movie, and Zapp Brannigan is the antihero of the animated sitcom "Futurama." 

Branigan fans might also want to consider such related <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/168/irish-names">Irish names</a> as Brennan and Breccan, Rafferty and Finnegan.

Branigan

The name of the guardian angel in It's a Wonderful Life is rarely heard the rest of the year because of its studious, near-nerdy image, but this could change in the current naming climate. 
 An English peerage title, Clarence enjoyed great popularity at the turn of the last century, reaching as high as Number 18 in 1900, and staying on the list until 2010. It has two prominent legal bearers--Clarence Darrow, defense attorney at the Scopes Trial, and current Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. We can thank Clarence Birdseye for the invention of frozen food. Aretha Franklin and Louis Armstrong both named their sons Clarence.

Clarence

Clifford is beginning to overcome a slightly stodgy intellectual image and showing signs of possible revival. Kids might or might not like the association with the big red dog. 
In England, the Clifford family was a powerful family in the Middle Ages. In this country, it was well used for most of the twentieth century, peaking at Number 57 in 1909, but a Top 100 name through 1950. Most prominent American bearers: playwright Clifford Odets and jazz trumpet great Clifford Brown.

Clifford

The great sax player John Coltrane could be a cool naming inspiration for a jazz fan. 

Coltrane

Finnigan is another way to spell Finnegan, one of the energetic Irish surname-names in vogue now. One note: While Finnigan, Finnian, Finley and so on are appealing names on their own, you don't need to use a longer form to get to Finn, which is a perfectly proper name all on its own.

Finnigan

Fletcher is a common surname with a touch of quirkiness; it definitely fits into the So Far Out It's In category--and moving further in all the time along with other occupational names from Parker to Forester.
 One notable historical Fletcher is Fletcher Christian, the British seaman and mutineer portrayed on the screen at various times by Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, Marlon Brando and Mel Gibson. A musical namesake is Fletcher Henderson, who was important in the development of big band jazz and swing music.

Fletcher

Fredrick

Harrison, a name made viable by Harrison Ford, is increasingly popular with parents who want an H name that's more formal than Harry or Hank but doesn't veer into the stiff Huntington-Harrington territory. 
 As a surname, Harrison has both Beatle and presidential connections. Harrison was the surname of two presidents, William Henry Harrison, who died 31 days after taking office, and Benjamin Harrison, whose election in 1888 sparked Harrison's peak as a first name.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, aka Prince Harry and Meghan, used Harrison as a patronymic middle name for their son, Prince Archie.

Harrison

The striking Ignatius is making a truly surprising comeback, sparked by its selection by not one but two celebrities — Cate Blanchett and Julianne Nicholson. With its fiery qualities and magical feel, Ignatius might just fit in with Blaze, Griffin, Ember, or Atticus.
 
While Ignatius is now associated with fire, it originally derived from the Ancient Etruscan Egnatius, a name of unknown meaning. The spelling was changed to make it closer to the sound-alike Latin word, ignis, and thus, the fire meaning was born.
 
The name of several saints including the founder of the Catholic Jesuit order, Ignatius was once reasonably well-used in the US, ranking in the Top 1000 in the early 20th century. Out of favor since 1930, it has been slowly trending upwards since the early 2000s, and as of 2023, it is given to around 90 boys each year.
 
Other notable bearers include: Charles Ignatius Sancho, a writer, abolitionist, composer, and the subject of a recent novel by Paterson James; Ignatius James, an Australian singer and producer; Ignatius Jones, a Fillipino-Australian rock singer and journalist; and Ignatius Ganago, a Cameroonian footballer. Writer of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Arthur Conan Doyle, also has Ignatius as a middle name. 
 
One big selling point of Ignatius is that despite its grandeur, it has several down-to-earth nicknames: Iggy, Nate, and Nash. Plus, the Spanish variation, Ignacio, is long-standing feature in the US Top 1000, so while Ignatius might be rare, its close relative is definitely not. 
 
Love Ignatius but can't quite commit to it? You could consider Indigo or Inigo with the nickname Iggy, or a similar-but-more-popular choice, like Azarius, Ozias, Ziggy, or Elias.

Ignatius

Jennings is a common English surname that originated as a patronymic for the child of someone named Jen, a short form of John.

With the craze for s-ending surname names, this one is growing in popularity, given last year to more than 80 baby boys and about 25 baby girls in the US.

Jennings could be an original honor name for grandpa John....or even grandma Jennifer.

Jennings

An Old World name that might have a chance to rise again with other ancient and worldly forms. Be sure to say yo-HAHN-es.

Johannes

Lawrence has survived from Roman times, when Laurentium was a city noted for its laurel trees (the laurel is a symbol of wisdom and achievement). It was in the Top 50 from the 1890s through the 1950s and the Top 100 for decades longer, always among the most popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/boys-names/l">boys' names starting with L</a>, but Lawrence is now used less for babies than Landon or Lorenzo. 

Nickname Lauro perks it up while Larry feels terminally dated. Loren and Laurie make it more unisex. The Laurence spelling was popularized by Sir Laurence Olivier and is also attached to fellow actor Laurence Fishburne.

Lawrence

More popular in its Layton spelling, Leighton is rising in popularity in the US for both sexes simultaneously, although this spelling remains more popular for girls for now – no doubt helped by actress Leighton Meester. Lleyton – as in Australian tennis star Lleyton Hewitt – is another, even more complicated, variant spelling.

Leighton

Lysander is a distinctive Greek name that could be thought of as a more creative cousin of Alexander. In ancient history, Lysander was the name of an esteemed Spartan naval commander and his literary cred comes from one of the two star-struck young men in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as one of the twin sons (the other being Lorcan) of Luna Lovegood, whom we learn about in the Harry Potter epilogue.
 Previously confined to the nurseries of Mayfair and Belgravia, we think Lysander could easily emigrate to the playgrounds of Park Slope.

Lysander

It's ironic that the name Maverick is not such a maverick anymore. Heard first in a 1950s James Garner western TV series, and then as the Tom Cruise character in Top Gun, Maverick symbolizes an unfettered, free spirit. 

In fact, Maverick is the name of the <a href="https://nameberry.com/dna/type/maverick">Baby Name DNA type</a> that's the least conventional and the most adventurous of all. But the name Maverick is too popular these days to appeal to someone whose Baby Name DNA type is Maverick these days, having shot up into the US Top 100 back in 2017.
 
Also on the rise in the UK and Canada, Maverick was given to 6962 boys in the US in 2023 — nearly six times the number who were given the name a decade ago. With its cool, cowboy vibes and surname-feel, it does appeal to contemporary tastes and fits in with the likes of Waylon, Walker, Brody, and Cooper. 
 
As a word, Maverick came about in the 19th century, derived from the surname of a nonconforming Texas rancher who didn't brand his calves. If it was this unconventional feel you were hoping for, you could consider Ranger, Merritt, Cormac, or Whittaker.

Maverick

Other kids might see a teasible connection to mortician or mortuary. Mortimer is an English family name used a few generations ago as an Anglicization of Moses; it was Walt Disney's original choice for the name of his mouse, until his wife talked him out of it.

Mortimer

Jaunty and raffish, Rafferty is one of the most engaging of the Irish surnames, used by Jude Law and Sadie Frost for their son. Fortunately, it doesn't still go by its original form: O'Raighbheartaigh.
 Raff and Rafe are two equally great nicknames.

Rafferty

Rawlings was a surname brought to England with the Norman invasion and has ties to the name Raul, which means "wolf counsel."

Rawlings

Now seen as the chap in the smoking jacket in a 1930s drawing-room comedy, Reginald has actually been on the US popularity list every year since 1880.
 A name that was quite common throughout the MIddle Ages, in the modern era Reginald has been associated—in its nickname form—with star athletes like Reggie Jackson and Reggie Bush, plus it's the birth name of Elton John. In literature, Reginald Wilfer is a character in the Dickens novel Our Mutual Friend; Reginald is also the first name of capable and oh-so-proper butler Jeeves in P.G. Wodehouse's books, and, indeed, it still reflects his pompous image.

Reginald

The surname Reynolds derived from the given name Reynold, which was common during the Middle Ages.

Reynolds

Septimus is one of the more dashing of the birth-order Latin number names that were revived by the Victorians. So even if you don't anticipate son number 7, you might be bold enough to consider this relic, certainly preferable to sixth-son name Sextus.
 Septimus was popularized by the Roman Emperor Septimus Severus, a patron of arts and letters. There was a Septimus in Wilkie Collins's The Moonstone, in Dickens's The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and in Trollope's Barchester novels. Probably it is most familiar to modern readers as one of the principal characters in Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway, and as Harry Potter wizard, Septimus Weasley. There is also Septimus Heap, a series of bestselling fantasy novels by Angie Sage.

Septimus

In the US, this variation is more popular than the original. Terrence has been in the US Top 1000 since 1920, but Terence has been left behind. Alternate spelling Terrance is the most popular iteration of the name.
 Terrence Howard plays Lucious Lyon in the hit television series Empire.

Terrence

Thaddeus, a distinguished, long-neglected name, has several areas of appeal: a solid New Testament legacy, a nice antique feel, and the choice of several more modern nicknames and international variations.
 In the Bible, Thaddeus was one of the original Twelve Apostles.
 Thaddeus has made quite a few screen appearances, ranging from Spongebob Squarepants to Police Academy to Get Smart (it was the given name of the Chief) to Harry Potter. As Tadzio—the Slavic version—he played a leading role in Thomas Mann's Death in Venice.
 In real life, Thaddeus Stevens was a dominant political figure during the Civil War. Mia Farrow has a son named Thaddeus.

Thaddeus

Thatcher is an open and friendly freckle-faced surname, fresher sounding than Tyler or Taylor, that dates back to the days of thatched-roof cottages. It is catching on with modern parents—it reached the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2013.
 Britberries in particular may have strong associations to Prime Minister Margaret, but the surname has other notable bearers as well, such as Becky Thatcher, the object of Tom's affections in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. Thatcher Grey is the protagonist's father on Grey's Anatomy, and a young Heath Ledger played William Thatcher in 2001's A Knight's Tale.
 TV celebrity chef Cat Cora has a son named Thatcher Julius.

Thatcher

Sterling626's list "8 Letter Boy Names" of 30 great name ideas: Alastair - Thatcher!