If you love one-syllable names...
- Bell
Origin:
English and Scottish occupational nameMeaning:
"ringer of the bell"Description:
These days, it's more likely you'd call your daughter the popular Belle or Bella.
- Belle
Origin:
Short form of Isabelle or FrenchMeaning:
"beautiful"Description:
Belle has nothing but positive associations, from "belle of the ball" to "Southern belle" to the heroine of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. As if this weren't enough good things, Belle is also one of the most familiar and usable names that mean beautiful. Though it has been overshadowed by the Twilight-influenced Bella and longer forms like Isabella and Annabella, Belle has its own Southern charm and would make a pretty choice as a first or middle name.
- Beth
Origin:
Diminutive of ElizabethMeaning:
"pledged to God"Description:
The sweetest and most sensitive of the pet names for Elizabeth, now also one of the most dated.
- Birch
Origin:
Tree nameDescription:
Birch is a rarely used nature name that calls to mind the lovely image of the tall, strong but graceful white-barked tree.
- Bird
Origin:
Nature nameDescription:
We once dismissed Bird as "too flighty", but with the rise of avian names from Lark to Robin to, well, Birdie, we don't see why Bird can't be a fine choice, especially as a middle name.
- Blade
Origin:
Word nameDescription:
One of the new crop of boys' names that manage to be unconventional and macho at the same time -- though Blade verges on the threatening.
- Blair
Origin:
ScottishMeaning:
"dweller on the plain"Description:
In the USA, Blair is gaining momentum, rising quickly for the last 10 years and likely to continue to climb. In England and Wales, where Blair has political connotations – calling to mind former prime minister Tony Blair – it is much less common, although it is in use for boys in its native Scotland.
- Blaire
Origin:
Spelling variation of BlairDescription:
Blair with a little something extra, though that's hardly needed.
- Blaise
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"one who stutters"Description:
Despite its modern sound, Blaise has plenty of history as a given name (for boys), from a Christian martyr to Arthurian legends. Today Blaise feels like the cool and edgy Blaze with a French accent.
- Blanche
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"white"Description:
Blanche, which originated as a nickname for a pale blonde and then became associated with the notion of purity, was in style a century ago, ranking in the double digits until 1920. She then had to fight the stereotype of faded Southern belle, a la Blanche DuBois in Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire and Blanche Devereaux in TV's Golden Girls. Now all three of the Golden Girls--Blanche, Rose and Dorothy--could be ready for revival, with Blanche sounding like a stronger, simpler alternative to Bianca.
- Blaze
Origin:
English word nameMeaning:
"fire"Description:
Originally a form of the saint's name Blaise, though now more likely to be a hot word name used for both sexes, though heavily weighted toward the boys. It has been in the boys' Top 1000 since the year 2000.
br>On the pop culture side of things, Blaze Bayley is a singer and musician who has been connected to the bands Wolfsbane and Iron Maiden.
- Bliss
Origin:
English word nameDescription:
A sweet, uplifting and still fairly uncommon modern virtue name. Its single syllable makes it especially good as a middle name, but it would also make a big impact in the first spot.
- Blithe
- Blue
Origin:
Color nameDescription:
Among the coolest of the cool color names, particularly popular with celebs as a unisex middle name.
- Blythe
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"happy, carefree"Description:
Blythe originated as a nickname for an upbeat person, coming from the Old English word bliðe, meaning "merry" or "cheerful." Today the homophone blithe shares the same meaning. Blythe was eventually adapted to a surname before it became a feminine given name.
- Bow
- Bram
Origin:
Dutch variation of AbrahamMeaning:
"father of multitudes"Description:
Bram has an unusual measure of character and charm for a one-syllable name; it started as a hipper-than-Abe diminutive of the biblical Abraham, but is also an independent Irish and Dutch name, made famous by Irish-born Dracula creator Bram (nee Abraham) Stoker. Bram is currently Number 16 in the Netherlands; Bram Howard was a character on The West Wing.
- Bran
Origin:
Diminutive of BrandonMeaning:
"broom-covered hill"Description:
A little heavy on the fiber content; we prefer Bram. But Bran is also the Celtic god of the underworld, whose symbol is the raven.
- Brett
Origin:
CelticMeaning:
"from Brittany"Description:
Football great Brett Favre single-handedly kept this name in the limelight, though it continues to sink in popularity.
- Bridge
Origin:
Word nameDescription:
A new name with the potential for spanning across a far-reaching future.