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Digby

English, Norse

"town by the ditch"

Digby is a place-name in Lincolnshire turned surname turned quirky first name that is starting to get some attention. In fact, it ranked in the UK Top 1000 in a recent year where it fits in with the…

Watson

English and Scottish surname related to Walter

"son of Wat"

What with the resurgence of W names like Weston and Walter, the prominence of high profile actress Emma and golfer Bubba, and even the attention paid to Watson, the IBM computer on "Jeopardy" (named…

Lazlo

English variation of László, Hungarian

"glorious ruler"

Arguably, an even more Anglicized spelling of László than Laszlo, this stripped back form of the Hungarian name has begun to see occasional use in the US, though the longer spelling is still twice as…

Ebenezer

Hebrew

"stone of help"

Ebenezer is the name of a biblical place --the stone set up by Samuel to mark his victory over the Philistines--rather than a person. It was adopted by the British Puritans as a first name and then…

Sherlock

English

"fair-haired"

If ever there was a one-person name, it's probably Sherlock. But Sherlock Holmes the character has arguably never been hotter: he's been played by Robert Downey Jr., Ian McKellen, Jonny Lee Miller…

Osric

English

"divine ruler"

Clad in armor. But while this name may have been forbiddingly antiquated not that long ago, the connection to the trendy nickname Os or Oz makes it a real possibility.

Waldo

German, pet form of names such as Waldemar

"to rule"

Its jaunty o-ending makes this name more appealing than most of its Germanic brothers, and we hope we're beyond the constant response to his name being "Where's Waldo?" The weighty reputation of…

Mowgli

Literary name

The name of the young hero of Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book , who was raised by wolves (really) and becomes a genius hunter and trapper, was chosen as a middle name for their son Bronx (really,…

Mingus

Scottish, variation of Menzies

"tenants of a manor"

Supermodel Helena Christensen named her son in honor of jazz great Charles Mingus, opening up a whole category of jazzy possibilities: Kenton, Calloway, Ellington, Gillespie, Mulligan, Tatum, and…

Balthasar

Greek

"God protects the king"

Balthasar was one of the biblical Three Kings who visited the infant Jesus, also used by Shakespeare and in the oil-rich Getty family; offbeat and intriguing. Balthazar is another, equally…

Abelard

German

"noble, steadfast"

Abelard brings to mind Peter/Pierre Abelard, the great twelfth century Breton scholastic philosopher and theologian, who was equally celebrated for his tragic love affair with Heloise--one of the…

Gillespie

Scottish

"bishop's servant"

Sometimes heard as a first name in Scotland, particularly among the Campbell clan.

Onslow

English

"Andrǣd's hill"

A rare surname name that could follow in the footsteps of Harlow, Marlow, and Winslow, Onslow comes from the Old English name Andrǣd , which likely relates to Andrew and Anders. In turn, this could…

Sargent

Spelling variation of Sergeant, Latin

"to serve"

One of the few military ranks used as a name, as in Kennedy in-law and Peace Corps creator Sargent (born Robert Sargent) Shriver. There's also a more creative, artistic association with painter John…

Jiminy

Jiminy is a masculine name that gained recognition primarily through the character Jiminy Cricket in Disney's 'Pinocchio.' Rather than having ancient roots, this whimsical name evolved from the…

Pinky

Pinky is an unconventional masculine name that originated as a nickname before occasionally being used as a given name. It typically refers to the smallest finger on the hand or the pinkish color. As…