User-created list
English Surnames
Across 4 pages
of 4
About this list
The names
Hudson
English place-name and surname
"Hugh's son"
Hudson has risen quickly up the charts over the past 30 years, getting a lot of its style value from New York's Hudson River. That makes it a nature name and a place name that's also got the fashion…
Bennett
English medieval form of Benedict, Latin
"blessed"
Bennett is Ben with a bow tie, kind of a cross between Benjamin and Beckett. It's been trending up on the popularity charts in recent years, and its choice by The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt 's Jane…
Easton
English
"eastern town"
Easton is a stylish Ivy League-ish place and surname name, more modern than Weston, on its way up for both sexes as part of the new direction baby names are taking, as in North and West. Easton was…
Dawson
English
"son of David"
Dawson was scarcely heard as a first name before the debut of Dawson's Creek in 1998, at which point it leaped up more than 550 places in one year. The character Dawson Leery, played by James Van Der…
Griffin
Welsh, variation of Griffith
"strong lord"
Griffin is one of the newer and most appealing of the two-syllable Celtic surnames. In English, griffin is the name of a mythological creature, half eagle, half lion. It re-entered the list in 1983…
Delaney
Irish
"dark challenger; dark river"
Delaney has been a popular surname-style choice since 90s, when it joined other Irish surnames such as Cassidy, Kennedy, and Mallory on the US Charts. Buoyant, bright, and cheerful, it ranks in the…
Benson
English
"son of Ben"
Benson has outgrown its long association with a wisecracking TV butler with a fresh new association: singer songwriter Benson Boone. Parents may see it as an alternate route to nickname Ben, very…
Spencer
English
"house steward, dispenser of provisions"
Spencer is a name that has everything: it's both distinguished sounding and accessible, dignified but Spencer Tracy-like friendly. Picked by several celebrities (a couple of times even for a girl),…
Oakley
English
"oak wood or clearing"
As sturdy as Oak, but with stronger roots as a first name, Oakley ticks lots of boxes for modern trends. With its unisex vibe, its nature-based meaning, its surname-y feel, and its popular -lee…
Fletcher
English occupational name
"arrow-maker"
Fletcher is a common surname with a touch of quirkiness; it definitely fits into the So Far Out It's In category--and moving further in all the time along with other occupational names from Parker to…
Layton
Old English
"settlement with a leek garden"
This first name was once a surname derived from Old English. Used quietly a century ago, the current fashion for two-syllable boy names ending in n makes this one a new hit.
Huxley
English
"inhospitable place"
Huxley is definitely rising as a surname name, with its X that makes almost any name cooler. It debuted in the US Top 1000 in 2015. The modern nicknames Hux and Huck certainly don't hurt. Last year,…
Corey
Irish
"from the hollow"
Former teen idol name, now middle-aged. This name has been on a steady decline since the early-1990s.
Sumner
English occupational name
"summoner"
Billionaire Sumner Redstone, the nonagenarian owner of CBS and Viacom, practically has a monopoly on his first name — for now. But Hunter, Asher, and Ryder have ushered in a major vogue "-er" names,…
Tobin
English surname derived from Tobias
"God is good"
Tobias-related name that makes an attractive and modern-sounding form of the biblical original. It was recently chosen by Karolina Kurkova for her son.
Foster
English occupational name
"forester"
Foster is one commonly heard last name that makes a fine first. The word foster means "to nourish" — as in "fostering hope", or "fostering a relationship". The only problem with Foster might be its…
Jarvis
English variation of Gervase, meaning unknown
Jarvis, one of the original two-syllable nouveau boys' choices, is a saint's name with a certain retro charm and a nice quirky feel. Though Jarvis peaked in the late 1880s, he is beginning to sound…
Bryant
Variation of Brian, Irish
"strong, virtuous, and honorable"
Bryant has a longer history as a first name in the US than its father name Brian, ranking among the Top 1000 since the list began in 1880 while Brian only jumped on in 1925. That may be because the…
Sampson
Hebrew
"sun"
This name, once considered overly powerful due to the superhuman strength of the biblical figure, is now an option for parents in search of an unusual route to Sam. But you really don't need that p:…
Perry
English
"dweller near a pear tree"
It's a long time now since this casual but suave name was linked to velvet-throated, cardigan-sweatered singer Perry (born Pierino, son of Pietro) Como's day... and this could be the moment for a…