my guilty pleasure names

Gatlin has risen into the Top 1000 in recent years on the strength of its association with the Olympic champion sprinter Justin Galtin as well as the Gatlin Brothers of Nashville fame. The name has the same root as gadabout, thus the meaning related to wandering.

Like Silver, a shimmering metallic color name, almost too dazzling for an ordinary boy.

More Sadie than Sadie, this old canasta player--somewhat modernized and energized by Goldie Hawn--looks like it could be making a comeback. It was recently chosen for her daughter by Ione Skye and Ben Lee, as well as by shoemeister Steve Madden.

Brooke Shields chose this name for her younger daughter. It's one of the original androgynous movie star names, precursor to Drew and Glenn and Cameron, borne by Greer Garson.

Gus is a homey grandpa nickname name that can work as a short form for any of the above or stand on its own as a cutting-edge replacement for Max and Jake--though it was off the Top 1000 from 1978 until 2016, when it squeaked in at Number 999.

Hart could be the hero of a romantic novel, but on the other hand, it's short, straightforward, and strong sounding. The most famous bearer of the name was tragic poet Hart (born Harold) Crane, but it also has musical cred via Lorenz Hart, of the classic Rodgers & Hart songwriting duo and a literary tie to playwright Moss Hart.

In the USA, Hattie is one of those nicknames that is now more popular than its parent name, Harriet. In England, however, Harriet is still by far more popular than Hattie, while in Australia, Harriet is highly popular while no data exists on Hattie. In the US, we’d like to see Harriet get more usage but we’re happy to see Hattie again.

Aviation enthusiast John Travolta put this fast-paced name in the lexicon when he used it for his late son, and George Lucas followed suit.

Kenna is the Scottish version of Kendra, both of which are feminine versions of Kenneth. Used in the TV show Reign for one of the supporting characters.

The next Destiny? Kismet seems like it might be fated for increased use.

A rarer-than-rare floral name with a sting in the tail!

Lumi may be a rare girls' name in the USA and England, but it comes in the Top 50 in Finland, where it means snow. Given the popularity of Winter, Holly, Ivy and many other wintery-christmassy names, we think that short and spunky Lumi definitely has potential for greater usage outside its home country as one of the more unusual names for Christmas babies.

This rarely used boys name is one of the few gem names for a boy. Obsidian is actually a type of volcanic glass, formed when lava cools very quickly. This ultra-cool name might spark a love of volcanoes and geology in a little boy.

Unlike Pearl and Ruby, this is one gem name suited for boys, the final x making it sound strong and virile. Musician Iggy Azalea chose the name Onyx for her son.

Oslo, the capital city of Norway, makes for an intriguing new place name, especially with its bookended O's, as in Otto. One Berry has already used it and we predict others will follow.

Rawlings was a surname brought to England with the Norman invasion and has ties to the name Raul, which means "wolf counsel."

The "Believe It or Not" jokes will get old fast, but this surname feels fun and on-trend for both girls and boys.

Ryatt — which may be a combination of names like Ryan and Wyatt — gives you the sound of Riot without the violent connotations. Naturally, it's almost twice as popular among baby boys than Riot, even cracking the Top 1000 in 2022.

Could there be a more poetic name than Sonnet? Actor Forest Whitaker was inspired to choose it for his daughter.