Transmasc Nonbinary Name Shopping List

Masculine- or neutral-leaning names I like, love, and adore, and would consider as my chosen name when I transition. A mix of popular and uncommon, well-liked and despised, and alike and unalike.
  1. Dal
    • 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.
    • Elliott
      • Origin:

        Variation of Elliot
      • Meaning:

        "Jehovah is God"
      • Description:

        One of the four perfectly proper spellings of this name ranging from the spare (but poetic) Eliot to the full-blown Elliott. Elliott and Elliot are the two most popular, and they have given to almost the same number of baby boys in recent years. Elliott has that "-tt" ending that is so popular among parents today, with popular picks like Everett and Emmett, Beckett and Bennett. "El" names for both boys and girls have been trending in recent years, with Eli, Elijah, and Elias at the top of the charts for boys. Elliott has always been on the charts in the US, but is currently at its highest point ever. Elliott is also gaining in the UK, currently at number 107 in England. Elliott was the name of the dragon in the classic Disney film, Pete's Dragon.
    • Emerson
      • Origin:

        English
      • Meaning:

        "son of Emery"
      • Description:

        Emerson is a dignified, somewhat serious name associated with transcendental thinker Ralph Waldo Emerson. Much more popular now for girls since Desperate Housewife Teri Hatcher used it for her daughter, it is definitely still a viable boys name.
    • Henry
      • Origin:

        German
      • Meaning:

        "estate ruler"
      • Description:

        Henry is back. The classic Henry climbed back onto the Top 10 in the US in 2021 for the first time in over a century, and now stands at Number 8.
    • Joel
      • Origin:

        Hebrew
      • Meaning:

        "Jehovah is his God"
      • Description:

        In the Old Testament, Joel was one of King David's 'mighty men' and the name was taken up by the Puritans of the sixteenth century. In the mid 1960s, Joel entered the Top 100, and stayed there for about twenty years, as parents tried to jazz up and formalize old standby Joe by reviving this biblical name.
    • Jude
      • Origin:

        Latin diminutive of Judah
      • Meaning:

        "praised"
      • Description:

        Jude is a modern star, maintaining a steady level of popularity -- but not TOO much popularity, in the US at least. Thank Jude Law and the great Lennon-McCartney song "Hey Jude", double-handedly responsible for propelling Jude up the charts.
    • Moss
      • Origin:

        English
      • Meaning:

        "descendant of Moses"
      • Description:

        This evocative green nature name, heard much more frequently as a surname, is associated with playwright Moss Hart (born Robert), who co-wrote (with George S. Kaufman) such enduring Broadway comedies as The Man Who Came to Dinner and You Can't Take it With You.
    • Newt
      • Origin:

        English
      • Meaning:

        "a small salamander"
      • Description:

        Rarely used on its own and irrevocably tied to former House Speaker Gingrich -- who was christened Newton.
    • Oren
      • Origin:

        Hebrew
      • Meaning:

        "laurel or pine tree"
      • Description:

        Soft and sensitive name often heard in Israel.
    • Owen
      • Origin:

        Welsh
      • Meaning:

        "young warrior; well-born"
      • Description:

        Owen, a resonant Celtic name, has ranked among the Top 100 boys' names in the US for 20 years and is now at its highest point ever.
    • Rhys
      • Origin:

        Welsh
      • Meaning:

        "ardor"
      • Description:

        There's Rhys and there's Reese (now more popular for girls) and there's Reece, and we particularly like the traditional Welsh spelling, which entered the list in 2004, possibly influenced by Jonathan Rhys Meyers, of The Tudors, and Welsh-born actor Rhys Ifans.
    • Theo
      • Origin:

        Diminutive of Theodore
      • Meaning:

        "gift of God"
      • Description:

        See the popularity graph below for the name Theo? It's been heading straight uphill since 2010, when it hopped back onto the Top 1000 after a 60+ year absence.
    • Willem
      • Origin:

        Dutch variation of William
      • Meaning:

        "resolute protector"
      • Description:

        Common in Holland, the appealing Willem (as in de Kooning and Dafoe) makes William fresh and distinctive.