Place Names for Boys USA Edition part 1

Hudson

English place-name and surname

"Hugh's son"

Hudson has risen quickly up the charts over the past 30 years, getting a lot of its style value from New York's Hudson River. That makes it a nature name and a place name that's also got the fashion…

Archer

English

"bowman"

Archer is an Anglo-Saxon surname that feels more modern than most because of its on-target occupational and Hunger Games associations. And it's a nice way to bypass the clunky Archibald to get to the…

Carson

English and Scottish surname

"son of the marsh dwellers"

Carson is one of the most long-running popular androgynous baby names , with a dash of the Wild West via the legendary Missouri frontiersman Kit Carson. Dating back to when it was the name of Nancy…

Griffin

Welsh, variation of Griffith

"strong lord"

Griffin is one of the newer and most appealing of the two-syllable Celtic surnames. In English, griffin is the name of a mythological creature, half eagle, half lion. It re-entered the list in 1983…

Callahan

Irish

"bright-headed"

Callahan, the simpler spelling of Callaghan, is a rhythmic jig of a name whose history harks back to the ancient King of Munster. In the Dirty Harry movies, the Clint Eastwood character is Harry…

Benson

English

"son of Ben"

Benson has outgrown its long association with a wisecracking TV butler with a fresh new association: singer songwriter Benson Boone. Parents may see it as an alternate route to nickname Ben, very…

Preston

English

"priest's estate"

Britney Spears put this old-fashioned surname name back on the map when she chose it as her son Sean's middle name, which the family uses as his first. One of the most popular names of its genre,…

Anderson

English from Scandinavian

"son of Anders"

Rugged and tough, Anderson shot up quite a bit on the pop list in the 2000's, no doubt in large part due to the prominence of white-haired cable newsman Anderson Coopers, more recently, it has…

Samson

Hebrew

"sun"

With the prevailing popularity of Samuel, some parents are considering this more (literally) powerful biblical name, which shares the desirable nickname of Sam. Samson was, of course, the…

Alden

English

"old, wise friend"

Hot young actor Alden Ehrenreich, the new Han Solo, gives this formerly-stodgy surname name an attractive new image, making it a fresh successor to Aiden or Holden. Before it got this fresh shine,…

Fisher

Occupational name

"fisherman"

As a member of two trendy name categories, animal and occupational, this name broke into the Top 1000 in 2004 and would make a nice tribute to an angler Grandpa. The best known bearer, Fisher…

Byron

English

"barn for cows"

For centuries, this name had a romantic, windswept image due to its strong connection to the poet Lord Byron, who inspired its use as a first name. It is one of those surprise names that's appeared…

Palmer

English

"pilgrim; one who holds a palm"

Palmer is a name that derives from the fact that pilgrims often carried palms, thus the double meaning. It's a fresher sounding twist other surname style names, such as Spencer, Carter, Porter and…

Thatcher

English occupational name

"roof thatcher"

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…

Slater

English occupational name

"maker of slates"

Slater has a more genial, friendly feel than most trade names. Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance used it for one of their twins. On the nineties TV show Saved by the Bell , the character A.C.…

Bryant

Variation of Brian, Irish

"strong, virtuous, and honorable"

Bryant has a longer history as a first name in the US than its father name Brian, ranking among the Top 1000 since the list began in 1880 while Brian only jumped on in 1925. That may be because the…

Pierson

Pierson is a masculine name that originated as an English surname meaning 'son of Piers' (the Medieval form of Peter, ultimately from Greek meaning 'rock' or 'stone'). Following the trend of using…

Brent

English

"dweller near the burnt land"

One of several blunt B names just this side of the gender divide. While its short and to-the-point sound may feel modern, it has been declining steadily since the 1980s. David Brent is Ricky…

Arley

English

"from the rabbit meadow; eagle's woodland; noble"

Similar in sound to Harley, Marley, and Arlo, this surname-style name is familiar in Brazil and a Top 1000 choice in England and Wales. Pronounced as AHR-lee in English and ahr-LAY in Latin America,…

Crawford

English

"ford where crows gather"

A common surname in Scotland, but a starchy first name choice.