User-created list
'Merica Names
Across 3 pages
of 3
Buchanan
Scottish
"place of the cannon"
A lesser-used presidential choice, with a charming, buccaneering sound. Fictional bearers include the Marvel Comics character James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes, as well as the heroine of F. Scott…
Baines
Chester
Latin
"fortress, walled town,"
Chester is a comfortable, little-used teddy-bear of a name that suddenly sounds both quirky and cuddly. Chester was a Top 100 name in the US from the 1880s to 1929, gradually fading till it finally…
Capote
Delano
French surname
"from the forest of nut trees"
Popular President Franklin Delano Roosevelt inspired a brief fashion for this as a first name in the 1940s; almost never heard today.
Dwight
German and Dutch
"white or blond"
This presidential name is in style limbo today - or, some might say, in the the sweet spot of familiar but little-used.
Eisenhower
Fillmore
Fillmore is a masculine name of English origin, classified as an occupational surname that has occasionally transitioned into use as a given name. It literally meant 'one who works with a file' (a…
Fitzgerald
Irish and Scottish
"son of Gerald"
Made famous by F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Fitzgerald Kennedy; still works best as a middle name.
Gerald
English and Irish from German
"ruler with the spear"
Both a saint's name and a presidential one via Gerald Ford—who was born Leslie—Gerald is a quintessential 1930s-40s name, when it ranked as high as Number 19. Hence all those nice middle-aged and…
Grover
English
"one who lives near a grove of trees"
Forget the furry blue Muppet, forget corpulent President Cleveland (not too difficult), and consider this name anew. We think it's spunky, a little funky, and well worth a second look, similar in…
Harding
English
"son of the courageous one"
For fans of Warren G. All two of them.
Herbert
German
"bright army"
Names ending in bert have long been in limbo, but with the return of Albert, maybe there's hope for Herbert. who could share the Bertie nickname. Herbert is a name that's been used by English…
Hoover
German
"owner of a patch of farmland"
A huve is 40 acres of land, so the occupational name Hoover refers to the farmer who owned and worked it. Hoover also relates to the rock band, the vacuum cleaner, the dam, and former FBI head J.…
Howard
German, English
"high guardian; brave heart"
Howard, once hugely popular in the Top 50 from the 1870s to early 1950s, hitting Number 24 in 1920 -- has been stuck in Dad-Grandad limbo for decades, but is showing some signs of stirring back to…
Kennedy
Irish
"misshapen head"
This attractive surname name still projects that Kennedy family charisma. While it didn't come into widespread use until long after the deaths of martyred heroes President John F. or Senator Robert…
Lyndon
English
"linden tree hill"
An English surname-turned-first-name whose most famous bearer is former US president Lyndon B. Johnson. His appointment in 1963 caused a huge spike in use for his unusual name the following year,…
Mckinley
Scottish
"son of the fair hero"
New Presidential name, if you're ready to move beyond Lincoln and Jefferson. At the turn of the last century, during the original McKinley's heyday, as a first name it almost reached the Top 100.
Reagan
Irish
"little king"
Inextricably tied to the former president, Reagan is a handsome surname name with a cool, current sound. Gender-neutral nickname Ray/Rae is also very on-trend right now. Reagan has been more popular…
Roosevelt
Dutch
"rose field"
Presidential surname adopted as a first by numbers of midcentury African-American parents.