User-created list
By meggblack · Updated April 2023
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Color name
Blue suddenly came into the spotlight, as the unusual color name chosen by Beyonce and Jay-Z for their baby girl Blue Ivy. Blue is also a starbaby middle name du jour, used for both sexes in…
Alecia is a feminine name that emerged as a variant spelling of Alicia, which itself derives from the Germanic name Adelaide, meaning 'noble type' or 'noble kind.' This particular spelling variation…
Word name or diminutive of Rocco
"rock or rest"
Rock definitely has a macho image, if a somewhat caricatured one, ala The Rock. But with the rise of word names and also of tough guy names, Rock feels more plausible than it did a generation ago.
English word and nature name
"to swindle"
It feels like Finch should be a modern bird name that's as popular as Wren or Lark, but that's not the case - so it's one to consider if you're looking for a nature name that's familiar but rare.…
First letter of the Hebrew alphabet and Hebrew
"chief, number one"
Aleph came into the spotlight when chosen by Israel-born Natalie Portman for her son. Alef is a more common spelling of these related Hebrew baby names . In the Kabbalah, Aleph/Alef relates to the…
Word name or diminutive of Woodrow, English
"row of houses by a wood"
While Woodrow is too forbidding, its nickname Woody is a bit cartoonish, as in Woody Woodpecker and the animated cowboy character in Toy Story. Woody also has a slang meaning that no teenage boy will…
Occupational name
One celebrity baby Pilot put this occupational choice into the pool -- together with the middle name Inspektor, something we wouldn't advise following.
English nature name
"apple"
When people talk about unique baby names, Apple is often one of the first examples they mention. Apple made international headlines when Gwyneth Paltrow chose this wholesome fruit name for her…
Word name
North's image and gender status was irrevocably changed when Kim Kardashian and Kanye West announced it as the name of their newborn daughter. But why not? West is firmly established as a name,…
Literary and botanical name
Katniss Everdeen is the heroine of the popular Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, whose name comes from the (very real) edible aquatic plant of the genus Sagittaria. Katniss's father tells her…
Word name and literary name
Everybody knows Huckleberry Finn, the Mark Twain character named, Twain said, for the 19th century slang term for "humble." A few modern parents have put it on a birth certificate, including "Man Vs.…
Bucky is a masculine diminutive nickname that typically derives from names like Buchanan, Buck, or sometimes William/Bill. With American roots, it carries a friendly, approachable quality with a…
Literary name
An admirable meaning, with roots in a Germanic word meaning wisdom, but we fear it will never be detached from the hobbit hero of The Lord of the Rings .
Spacey. Gravity will probably be too heavy and grave -- sorry -- for most parents. But one possible exception might be big fans of Alfonso Cuaron's 2013 movie Gravity . And astrophysicists.
German
"famous"
This cool and quirky short form of the suave Ludovic could be an even-more-adventurous spin on Nico and Hugo.
Literary and nickname name
Moby, the nickname of musician Richard Melville Hall, was thanks to his ancestor Herman Melville, creator of the infamous whale. You can imagine calling a child Moby as a cute nickname in honor of a…
