names that make a statement

Axel

Scandinavian variation of Absalom

"father of peace"

A classic in its native Scandinavia, Axel has a cool rock 'n' roll flavor in the US, thanks to Guns N' Roses' Axl Rose (born William). With its distinctive letter 'x', it has an effortlessly cool…

Malachi

Hebrew

"my messenger"

An Old Testament name with a Gaelic lilt, Malachi entered the list in 1987. In the Bible, Malachi (pronounced with the final syllable as EYE), was the last of the twelve Hebrew prophets, who foretold…

Jett

Mineral or word name

Short, sharp, and cool, Jett is a contemporary choice that connotes both gemstones and jet engines. Rarely used before the 90s, John Travolta, and then George Lucas, helped to put the name on the map…

Legend

English

"hero or fable"

Legend joins cousins Story, Saga and Fable in the baby name pantheon of narrative words. Unlike Story and Fable, however, Legend comes with additional weight, being used for fame ("living legend")…

Knox

Scottish

"round hill"

Knox is an old Scottish surname that Brad Pitt (whose great-great-grandfather was named Hal Knox Hillhouse) and Angelina Jolie took out of the back cupboard, dusted off, and elevated to coolness--to…

Maddox

Welsh

"son of Madoc"

Maddox, a previously obscure Welsh family name with a powerfully masculine image, suddenly came into the spotlight when Angelina Jolie chose it for her son in 2003. By the following year it was in…

Maximus

Latin

"greatest"

The powerful name of the powerful character played by Russell Crowe in the 2000 film Gladiator first appeared on the popularity charts that same year. Max to the max. One time considered a "too much…

Otto

German

"wealthy"

Otto is cool again. Long a quintessential Old Man Name, Otto has been promoted to trending darling of adventurous baby namers. Like most German names , Otto fell out of favor during and after the two…

Atticus

Latin

"from Attica"

Atticus, with its trendy Roman feel combined with the upstanding, noble image of Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird , is a real winner among boy names . Atticus entered the US Top 1000 in 2004…

Banks

English surname

"one who lives on the hillside or riverbank"

Banks is a topographical surname that refers not to those places where people keep their money but to riverbanks or hillsides, and specifically the people who live and work on them. A name with two…

Onyx

Word name

"gem stone; claw, nail"

Unlike Pearl and Ruby and more like Jasper, this gem name works well as a boys name. With its strong final X, it feels similar to Alex, Phoenix, Jax, and Rex, while the shiny black quality of the…

Killian

Irish

"war strife or church"

Killian – aka Cillian – is a spirited yet resonant Gaelic name that was borne by several Irish saints and could make a distinctive replacement for the dated Kelly. Kylian is another spelling that's…

Raiden

Japanese, English invented name

The name of the Japanese god of thunder makes an assertive choice, very much at home in the Western world. Because of the name's similarity to popular baby names Aiden and Jayden, most people will…

Jaxton

Modern invented name

"Jack's town"

We've had Jackson, Jaxcon and Jaxon, and now we have Jaxton. According to our most recent Playground Analysis, which calculates the popularity of names when all spellings are considered together,…

Bridger

English

"lives near the bridge"

A recent addition to the Most Popular list, Bridger has the trendy two-syllables and 'er' ending, and a historical reference to Jim Bridger, a foremost nineteenth-century frontiersman, explorer,…

Ryatt

Invented name

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…