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American Place Names

  1. Colorado

    • Origin:

      Spanish place-name

    • Meaning:

      "colored red"

    • Description:

      More unusual than Dakota or Austin, Colorado conjures images of majestic mountains and windswept wilderness. Some will prefer the more preppy Aspen, but Colorado feels like the true explorer.
  2. Columbus

    • Origin:

      Variation of Columbo or Columbia, Latin

    • Meaning:

      "dove"

    • Description:

      This is a big name, both in heritage and sound. On the right child, this could be inspired, but others may shrink from all the connotations. While your preferred nickname for this option might be Col (or Kit if you're connecting it to Christopher Columbus), you may end up with the slightly more cumbersome "Bus" as the short-form.
  3. Dakota

    • Origin:

      Place-name; Sioux

    • Meaning:

      "friendly one"

    • Description:

      An early and still one of the most popular unisex names, also a place name and name of a Native American people in the northern Mississippi valley, which makes it a controversial baby name choice. While the popularity of Dakota is trending downward for both genders, it's one of those rare genuinely gender-neutral names that is used for nearly equal numbers of boys and girls.
  4. Dallas

    • Origin:

      Place name, surname and Irish

    • Meaning:

      "meadow dwelling, valley house, skilled"

    • Description:

      A laid-back cowboy name which feels both cool and gentle, Dallas has ranked in the US Top 500 since records began in 1880. Never super popular but surprisingly never out of style, Dallas is given to nearly 1400 boys in the US every year.
  5. Dayton

    • Origin:

      English, variation of Deighton

    • Meaning:

      "place with a dike"

    • Description:

      If Dayton, like Trenton and Camden, is finding favor with parents, it's more because of its popular two-syllable surname feel and -on ending than the industrial city in Ohio.
  6. Denver

    • Origin:

      English or French place-name and surname

    • Meaning:

      "from Anvers"

    • Description:

      Before there was Aspen, Denver was the Colorado city name of choice, and it reentered the US Top 1000 in 2015 after a 14 year absence as a stylish two-syllable boys’ name with its trendy -er ending. Its decade of greatest use was the 1920s, when it reached as high as Number 422.
  7. Erie

    • Description:

      Erie is an uncommon feminine name with multiple potential origins. It may derive from the Erie Native American tribe and the Great Lake named after them, giving it a natural, geographical connection. The name could also relate to the Old English 'eerie,' meaning fearful or mysterious, though this association is less common. As a given name, Erie has remained quite rare throughout history, never achieving widespread popularity. It offers a concise, distinctive option for parents seeking a name with natural connections that's easy to spell and pronounce. The name's brevity and open 'e' ending give it a light, airy quality that feels both distinctive and unpretentious.

  8. Fairbanks

    • Origin:

      English

    • Meaning:

      "bank along the pathway"

    • Description:

      Alaska's second most populous city makes a baby name with a preppy, even aristocratic, flavor.
  9. Fargo

    • Origin:

      Place-name

    • Description:

      Fargo as a baby name? Though we haven't heard of any babies named for this frigid North Dakota city, it's certainly on the map of possibilities.
  10. Florida

    • Origin:

      Place name and Spanish from Latin

    • Meaning:

      "flowery"

    • Description:

      Lacks the cachet of some newer place-names.
  11. Georgia

    • Origin:

      English, feminine variation of George

    • Meaning:

      "farmer"

    • Description:

      Georgia is so rich, lush and luscious, it's almost irresistible. Georgia's now a rising star among the feminizations of George, helped by associations with the southern state (named for British King George II) and painter Georgia O'Keeffe, with the Ray Charles song "Georgia On My Mind" or maybe "Sweet Georgia Brown" playing in the background.
  12. Hawaii

    • Origin:

      Place-name

    • Description:

      An actual Hawaiian first name would convey the aura of the islands more originally and effectively.
  13. Houston

    • Origin:

      Scottish

    • Meaning:

      "Hugh's town"

    • Description:

      Looking for a Texas name more distinctive than Austin and Dallas? Houston is a lanky, roguish place-name, right in style with its Texas accent and cowboy image.
  14. Indiana

    • Origin:

      American place-name

    • Meaning:

      "land of the Indians"

    • Description:

      This state name emerged in the eighties along with westerners Dakota and Montana, and it's still used occasionally by high-profile parents such as Summer Phoenix and Casey Affleck. Action man Indiana Jones (played by Harrison Ford) makes Indiana "Indy" forever cool for a boy.
  15. Jackson

    • Origin:

      English

    • Meaning:

      "son of Jack"

    • Description:

      Jackson is one of those names that's much more popular than you think, coming in near the top of our annual Playground Analysis, which ranks names by grouping all their spellings together. Last year, more than 13,000 baby boys were named Jackson -- along Jaxon, Jaxson, Jaxxon, Jaxen, Jaxyn, Jaxsen, and Jaxsyn -- which counted together makes it the Number 5 boys' name.
  16. Jersey

    • Origin:

      English place name, Old Norse

    • Meaning:

      "Geirr's island"

    • Description:

      An established place name, associated with a sunny island in the English Channel, the Garden State in the US, knitted pullovers, reality TV, and a Broadway musical. It peaked in the late 2000s and though it is now in decline, 130 girls and nearly 50 boys received the name in 2023.

      -ey meaning "island". Alternative theories suggest it comes from jarl ,meaning "earl" or hjǫr meaning "sword".
  17. Juneau

    • Origin:

      Place-name

    • Description:

      Juneau could go either way as a name. The newfound fame of the movie heroine Juno knocks this unrelated though identical-sounding Alaskan name out of consideration for boys, for the moment. Though (male) writer Junot Diaz may put the sound-alike name back in the running for boys.
  18. Lexington

    • Origin:

      English place name

    • Description:

      Lexington is trending as a unisex name, used just about evenly for the genders. For Americans, it's got a patriotic feel, given the importance of Lexington, Massachusetts in the Revolutionary War. Lexington, Kentucky, in horse country, is another well-known city with the name. Short form Lex is user friendly.
  19. Louisiana

    • Origin:

      French place-name

    • Description:

      Louisiana is a geographic spin on the Louise theme. Pretty, if a bit of a syllable overload. Short form Lou or Lulu lightens it.
  20. Maine

    • Origin:

      Place-name

    • Description:

      Strong and spare state name, maybe better in the middle -- or for a boy.