Noble Baby Names

Alice is a classic literary name that's both strong and sweet, ranking in the US Top 100 and popular throughout the Western world. Alice is derived from the Old French name Aalis, a diminutive of Adelais that itself came from the Germanic name Adalhaidis, which is composed of the Proto-Germanic elements aþala, meaning "noble," and haidu, "kind, appearance, type."

Otto is cool again. Long a quintessential Old Man Name, Otto has been promoted to trending darling of adventurous baby namers.

Otis has real appeal for parents attracted to its catchy O initial and combination of strength and spunk. The appealing hero of the British TV show Sex Education has done much to propel Otis into the forefront of cool names.

Adelaide is now heading straight uphill on the coattails of such newly popular sisters as Ava, Ada, and Audrey, and in the company of Adeline and Amelia. It was chosen by actress Katherine Heigl for the name of her second daughter.

Some might be surprised to learn that Edwin has been a consistent presence on the popular names list since statistics have become available.

Adelina is back in the Top 1000 after an absence of nearly a century, thanks to the meteoric rise of her sister name Adeline -- along with Adelaide, Adele, and Ada.

Willoughby is an energetic last-name-first route to the popular short form Will, livelier than any of the two-syllable options. It could be picked up by parents attracted to the Willow sound for girls.

Lula is one of the livelier nickname-names with the fashionable double-L sound: It joins Lulu, Lila, Lily, and Lou among the trendiest names today. Lula might be short for Talula and sisters or for Lucy or Louise, or may stand on its own two adorable feet. Lula was actually a Top 50 name in the late 1880's and continued in the Top 100 for a couple of decades more.

The super-success of Adele, both the singer and the name, has brought attention to all her cousins — Adela, Adeline, Adelina — and the lovely Adelia. An undiscovered gem just waiting to be discovered.

Though used quite often for babies of both sexes, Khari, meaning "kingly," was traditionally a boys' name. Musical couple Fetty Wop and Masika Kalysha, however, named their daughter Khari.

Reign is one of a new, ahem, kingdom of word names that suggest a high-born child, joining Royal, Lorde, Titan, Saint, King, Princess, and Noble. We predicted this kind of defining name to be the Number 1 baby name trend of 2015...two weeks before Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick named their third child, a boy, Reign.

Wisecracking waitress name stuck in the luncheonette. Started as nickname for girls named Regina -- queen in Latin -- now mostly a canine choice.

Arguably, an even more Anglicized spelling of László than Laszlo, this stripped back form of the Hungarian name has begun to see occasional use in the US, though the longer spelling is still twice as popular. Given to 13 boys in a recent count, the name ultimately comes from the Slavic Vladislav.

Emyr is a name that is well-known in Wales, but little heard outside of it. There are several well-known Emyrs, from the famed Welsh novelist and poet Emyr Humphries to footballer Emyr Huws.

As Bas, it's a popular name in The Netherlands, but Baz, as in director Luhrmann, has potential for independent life too.

Curiously, Australian-born Moulin Rouge director Luhrmann was born neither Sebastian nor Basil, but had the name Mark Anthony on his birth certificate; his nickname arose from his supposed resemblance to a British TV fox puppet named Basil Brush.

Laird is a Scottish title for the landed gentry – it ranks just below a Baron – with a pleasantly distinctive Scottish burr that must have appealed to Sharon Stone, who chose it for her son.

If you like lispy Celtic and Gaelic names, you may fall for Lynneth. Lynneth has a similar sound to Gwyneth, Elspeth and Meredith and might, therefore, find popularity among those who are looking for an alternative to the rather dated Lynette.

Earl is a title name - brought to England by the vikings - that's out of fashion right now, unlike King and Duke. Its peak popularity was in the 1920s, which gives it a dusty great-grandpa feel, but there are also younger Earls in pop culture, like the reformed criminal in "My Name is Earl".

Delly is a feminine name that typically functions as a diminutive form of names like Adele, Cordelia, or Delilah. With English origins as a nickname, it has occasionally emerged as a given name in its own right. The name has a cheerful, friendly quality with its bouncy sound and '-ly' ending. Delly gained some recognition following the popularity of Australian basketball player Matthew Dellavedova, nicknamed "Delly." As a standalone name, it remains uncommon, making it distinctive without being unrecognizable. The name evokes a sense of warmth and approachability with its informal, endearing quality. Its simplicity makes it easy to pronounce across different languages and cultures.

Eetu is a perennial favorite in Finland, but is rarely if ever used in the States - probably because of the unfamiliar (to most people) spelling and pronunciation.