Echo, the pretty, resonant name of a legendary nymph, was the heroine of Joss Whedon's sci-fi series Dollhouse. Nick Hexum, of the band 311, named his daughter Echo Love.

The appealingly energetic Dax, with its trendy X-ending, re-entered the Top 1000 in 2007. Its somewhat sci-fi vibe emanates from his appearance as a fictional being in the Star Trek universe, seen on the TV show "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." The Power Rangers character Dax Lo was the Blue Ranger.

Fox is one animal name backed by a longish tradition, and then popularized via the lead character Fox Mulder on X Files. Fox is simple, sleek, and a little bit wild, and could make an interesting middle name.

Kara and the soundalike (though not necessarily related) Cara are among the most multi-cultural names around. Cara has roots in Latin, Italian, Irish, Spanish, and Portuguese, and Kara can be viewed as simply as K-starting version of Cara.

Nature names like Ocean and River are flowing back into favor, especially with nature lovers and green-oriented parents. In 2024, it was given to 483 boys and 325 girls, making this a unisex favorite in the US, while in the UK, it is considerably more popular for girls.

On the rise as an independent name: Zander and Xander are both widely used can increasingly be found as characters in movies and on TV.

Reggae master Bob's surname was one of the biggest risers on the popularity charts for girls in 2008, with spellings Marlee and Marely also leaping in favor. Also used for boys, Marley is one of the top unisex names in the US.

Cool and edgy meets sunny and beachy with this charming Italian option that might be more timeless than you think. Borne by St. Rocco, the 14th-century patron of the sick, known for helping those with the plague, it has been appearing in the US charts since the 1890s, spiking in the 1920s, then again in the 2000s, after Madonna polished it up by choosing it for her soon with British director, Guy Ritchie.

Down-home nickname name once associated with the friendly dragon on kids' TV. As Oliver rises, we may well hear more Ollies.

America has fallen in love with Hayes and Brooks and Banks and Rhodes, and now, parents are turning to Townes. With its fashionable S ending and image that can read as preppy or country or cowboy, depending on the context, Townes feels destined for mainstream success.

A light and breezy nature name that's currently in style limbo, despite its pleasant meaning, Dale was originally a surname, used for someone who lived near a valley. It was a Top 100 choice in the US between the 20s and 70s, though it has been out of the Top 1000 since the 2000s.

Most of the notable Rivers have been male, but this nature name certainly flows as well for a girl. The name River is still rising for both genders, with about 3500 baby boys receiving the name last year vs. 1900 baby girls.

Dalton is a name with multi-faceted appeal. Many are attracted to the name's resemblance to other two-syllable n-ending favorites: Colton, Holden, and cousins. Others see it as a trendy Western name, recalling the legendary Dalton Brothers gang. It also has something of an upscale, preppy feel connected to the exclusive New York private school.

Oslo, the capital city of Norway, makes for an intriguing new place name, especially with its bookended O's, as in Otto and leads to cool nickname Ozzie. One Berry has already used it and we predict others will follow; in fact, stats suggest it is used eight times more often than it was a decade ago.

Coco came to prominence as the nickname of the legendary French designer Chanel (born Gabrielle) and has lately become a starbaby favorite, initially chosen by Courteney Cox for her daughter Coco Riley in 2004. At first it was the kind of name that the press loves to ridicule, but we predict Coco's heading for more broad acceptance and even popularity.

Wolf is a name with a split personality. It can be seen as one of the fierce animal names, like Fox and Bear and Puma, with a touch of the werewolf, or it can be viewed as a quieter, Wolf Blitzer kind of name, fairly common in German (where is pronounced Vulf) and Jewish families, sometimes as a short form of Wolfgang, or even Wolfram or Wolfhart.

Following in the footsteps of Weston, Braxton, Clayton, and Paxton, Daxton has been climbing the US charts since the late 2000s. While recent years have seen it decline slightly, it remains a Top 500 choice, with the cool possibility of nickname Dax.

Enola has a lot of potential as a name: it includes the stylish 'nola' sound; it follows a similar letter pattern to the likes of Elora, Elara, and Elodie; it has a hint of Nevaeh about it, given that it is "alone" spelled backwards; it's familiar but not popular. For many decades, however, it was known only in relation to the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, the Enola Gay, and has been understandably avoided.

Cove is an up-and-coming nature name whose cool sound and peaceful image saw it rising for both sexes until COVID-19 hit. It decreased slightly for boys in 2020 and remained steading in 2021, but it has actually increased for girls, although it remains a seriously rare and distinctive choice.

This feminization of Anthony, like other early French forms, such as Babette and Nanette, is not heard as often as it once was, but it could be time for a reappraisal of this delicate Gallic choice.