Just like Sam and Ben, Tom could be revived as a simple, well liked name on its own. Tom, just Tom, is one of the Top 100 Boy Names in France

It is popularly claimed that the name Wendy was invented by Sir James Barrie in 1904 for the big sister character in his play Peter Pan, which was followed by the classic novel in 1911. Barrie supposedly took it from the nickname "fwendy-wendy", that he was called by a young girl acquaintance.

A warm and cuddly nickname name, although he famously "kissed the girls and made them cry" in the old nursery rhyme.

Gage was part of the craze for one-syllable surnames, with associations to tasty green gage plums and the mathematical gauge.

Fiery but slight middle name choice; much more apt to be a redhead's nickname.

Part of the vogue for French-sounding names in the 1920s and 30s, Nadine has been replaced by the Russian sound of Nadia and Natasha.

For centuries, this name had a romantic, windswept image due to its strong connection to the poet Lord Byron, who inspired its use as a first name. It is one of those surprise names that's appeared on the Top 1000 every year since 1880.

Arnie is a nerdy-tipping-into-cute nickname that may rise again, if not for this generation of babies then for their babies. Look for it in the nurseries of 2050.

Used primarily in Scotland, and represented here by singer Audra McDonald, the girls' name Audra has been overshadowed by the return of the classic Audrey. Audra may be to Audrey what Jenna is to Jennifer and Jessa is to Jessica: A variation that will rise as the original falls from favor.

Alternatively, however, Audra is a separate Lithuanian name, derived from the Lithuanian word for "storm". In this case, it would be pronounced OW-dru (OW to rhyme with cow, -u like the sound in up) and is used as a feminine form of Audrius.

Much-used midcentury diminutive, now fallen far from favor even as a middle name.

Literally meaning "lady" in Italian, Donna was the perfect ladylike housewife mom name on The Donna Reed Show in the fifties and sixties. And there were plenty of namesakes: Donna was in the Top 10 in 1964. These days we'd be more likely to associate it with the emanciatpated clothes of Donna Karen than as a baby name.

Carrie lives on mainly on the screen, as the new/old antiheroine of Stephen King's classic Carrie, as turn-of-the-21st-century diva Carrie Bradshaw of Sex & The City, and as Claire Danes' Emmy-winning character Carrie Mathison of Homeland.

The classic strong-yet-friendly nickname name, much used for charming movie characters.

Medieval name without much of a future.

More commonly spelled JUDD, this is a strong but sensitive short form that can easily stand on its own.

Jolly Holly has always been among the favorite names for Christmas babies, evoking the symbolic shrub with dark green leaves and bright red berries. And Holly is the flower for the month of December, so it's also among the perfect names for December babies. Holly is scarcely heard on baby boys, but Robin Tunney and Nicky Marmet used it as the middle name for their son Oscar.

Ralphie is one of those short forms that have been out of style for so long it just might have a chance of coming back in, if you can get past seeing it as a desperate attempt to cute-ify a stodgy old man's name.