In the Running

Lucas

Latin form of Luke

"man from Lucania"

Lucas is a Top 10 boys' name with a slightly-less-popular almost-identical twin brother, Luke. Like Elijah and Elias, Lucas and Luke come from the same root and have the same meaning and so feel even…

Sebastian

Latin from Greek

"person from ancient city of Sebastia, venerable"

With international flair and elegance, Sebastian is a saintly, Shakespearean and Disney-inspired choice: refined, classic-yet-unconventional, and totally in tune with other popular choices like…

Leo

Latin

"lion"

Leo is a strong-yet-friendly name that was common among the Romans, used for fourteen popes, and is now at its highest point ever in the US. Brave but sparky, Leo has ranked in the Top 20 in the US,…

Owen

Welsh

"young warrior; well-born"

Owen, a resonant Celtic name, has ranked among the Top 100 boys' names in the US for 20 years and is now trending ever-so-slightly downhill, good news for Owen-lovers who might rightly have feared…

Theo

Diminutive of Theodore

"gift of God"

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. Now in the Top 100 in this form, Theo's…

Max

English and German diminutive of Maximilian or Maxwell

"greatest"

Max was derived from Maximilian, a Latin name that originated from the Roman family name Maximus. The character name Max in the children's classic Where the Wild Things Are had an impact on baby…

Zachary

Hebrew

"the Lord has remembered"

Zachary, a Top 20 name throughout the 90s, is now sliding down the rankings though it remains in the Top 200. With its ancient roots and modern feel, it's easy to understand why Zachary has been such…

Zane

Possible variation of John

"God is gracious"

Western novelist Zane (born Pearl!) Grey made this name famous. Now, it's in tune with the style of our times, retaining that appealing cowboy image. Zane Grey was the great-grandson of Ebenezer…

Spencer

English

"house steward, dispenser of provisions"

Spencer is a name that has everything: it's both distinguished sounding and accessible, dignified but Spencer Tracy-like friendly. Picked by several celebrities (a couple of times even for a girl),…

Lance

English word name or English variation of Lanzo, German "long, pointed, medieval weapon; land"

"long, pointed, medieval weapon; land"

Though the fuller Lancelot has for the most part been shunned as a 'too-much-name' name, the short form Lance has been consistently in or around the Top 500 since 1938, climbing as high as Number 76…

Ravi

Hindi

"sun; conferring"

A title of the Hindu sun god, made cross-culturally famous by sitar player Ravi Shankar.

Chaz

Diminutive of Charles

The jazziest nickname for Charles.

Django

Romani

"I awake"

Django — the D is silent as most everyone now knows — the nickname of the great Belgian-born jazz guitarist Django (originally Jean Baptiste) Reinhardt, makes a dynamic musical choice for…