Rare Boys' Names with a Chance

Calloway

English from Latin

"pebbly place"

Calloway is one of those irresistibly jaunty, animated three-syllable surnames, like Sullivan, Rafferty and Finnegan — but this one has the added attraction of jazzy ties to the immortal "Dean of…

Amadeo

Italian

"lover of God"

Amadeo and Amedeo are both valid Italian forms of the Roman Amadeus, most famous as the middle name of the composer Mozart as well as the title of a movie about him. Mozart's name was actually the…

Enrico

Italian variation of Henry

One of several Latin names starting with E that would work and play well with others in any family.

Jebediah

Hebrew

"beloved friend"

Like its better known cousin Jedidiah, Jebediah is one of those four-syllable Old Testament names that is being shorn of its long white-bearded image, with the help of its modern-sounding Jeb…

Zedekiah

Hebrew

"the Lord is just"

The name of an Old Testament king, and yet another ' Z ' choice from the Bible that still retains some zip, especially with the appealing nickname Zed. Zedekiah was the name of the last king of Judea…

Crispin

Latin

"curly-haired"

Crispin, which was introduced into the mainstream by actor Crispin Glover and which means "curly-haired" in Latin, has an image very much like its first syllable: crisp, autumnal, and colorful. St.…

Giulio

Italian variation of Julius

Giulio is a Top 50 name in Italy, and we think Giulio is a good candidate to follow, especially now that Giovanni and Gianni are in up in the US charts. It's an interesting alternative to popular…

Quince

Latin

"applelike fruit"

The girls have Apple, Plum, Peaches, Cherry, and Berry: here's one variety of fruit suitable for a boy.

Nicandro

Spanish variation from Greek

"man of victory"

Nicandro might be of interest as a blend of two Anglo favorites -- Nicholas and Andrew.

Kier

Diminutive of Kieran or alternate spelling of Keir, Irish, Scottish

"little black-haired one; thicket, marsh"

Succinct and snappy, this name is both an alternative form of Keir and a short form of Kieran. It could therefore stem from the Irish ciar meaning "black" or the Scottish Kerr (via Norse kjarr ),…

Maxfield

English

"Mac's field"

This name may be related to the Latin Maximus, which means "the greatest," or to a British landowner's name, but for most modern parents, it's one of several ways to get to short form Max. Probably…

Tonio

Diminutive of Antonio

This short form of Antonio has long been used as an independent name, and would make a strong international choice.