Novelists, Playwrights, and Poets surnames
- Austen
Origin:
Literary surname and shortened form of Augustine, LatinMeaning:
"great, magnificent"Description:
Parents who love the great English novelist Jane Austen may choose this spelling of the popular name Austin to honor the author of Emma and Pride and Prejudice.
- Wright
Description:
Wright is a masculine name that originated as an English occupational surname referring to a craftsman or builder—specifically a woodworker or carpenter (from the Old English "wyrhta," meaning "worker"). As a first name, Wright carries strong traditional and artisanal connotations, suggesting skill, craftsmanship, and creation. It remains relatively uncommon as a given name, maintaining an air of distinction and uniqueness. The name has a strong, concise sound with its single syllable and consonant blend. Those named Wright might appreciate the name's connections to craftsmanship and its subtle suggestion that one can build or create their own path in life. Its surname-as-first-name style also reflects contemporary naming trends.
- Paz
Origin:
Hebrew; SpanishMeaning:
"gold; peace"Description:
Paz is an appealing Spanish name meaning "peace", derived from the Latin "pax". It's usually feminine in Spanish, but could also make an interesting literary choice for a boy, honoring the writer Octavio Paz.
- Twain
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"divided in two"Description:
Twain can be thought of as a modernization (and possible namesake) of the dated Wayne, seasoned with the humor of Mark Twain, who adopted it from a river term.
- Yeats
Origin:
Scottish, EnglishMeaning:
"the gates"Description:
Admirers of the haunting works of esteemed Irish poet and playwright William Butler Yeats might consider this surname-style name, especially for the middle spot. Ultimately derived from the Old English geat, Yeats is the Scottish form of Yates, pronounced exactly the same, and rhyming, helpfully, with its literal meaning of "gates".
- Stowe
Origin:
Place-name or surnameMeaning:
"meeting place"Description:
Stowe, the name of a beautiful mountain town in Vermont as well as the surname of the great author Harriet Beecher, is one of the oldest last names on record. The meeting place the name Stowe refers to is part of a church. Stowe might make a distinctive and meaningful middle name for skiers or Uncle Tom's Cabin fans.
- Thoreau
Origin:
FrenchMeaning:
"strength of a bull"Description:
A dashing French surname name most famously borne by Henry David Thoreau, an American naturalist, writer and philosopher who influenced such notable figures as Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. The most common modern American pronunciation is "thor-OH", with emphasis on the final syllable, although Thoreau himself pronounced it "THOR-oh".
- Shakespeare
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"brandish spear"Description:
This name will forever be associated with the Bard and would likely prove hard to live up to. It might be cool for a pet though.
- Chaucer
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"maker of breeches"Description:
One of the most distinguished names in literature could become a hero name in a family of poetry-lovers -- or be seen as a trendy new occupational name.
- Clifton
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"place on a cliff"Description:
A less-used cross between Clifford and Clinton.
- Shelley
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"clearing on a bank"Description:
Despite its poetic associations, almost as dated as Sheldon, and more feminine.
- Valery
Origin:
Variation of Valerie, FrenchMeaning:
"strength, health"Description:
Valery was in the Top 1000 from 2005 to 2009, and reemerged in 2018. This spelling is often used among Hispanic families in the US.
- Eliot
Origin:
Variation of Elliot, English diminutive of EliasMeaning:
"Yahweh is God"Description:
Sleekened spelling.
- Hemingway
Origin:
English place nameDescription:
No matter how much you love the novels of Papa H., don't saddle your son with this unwieldy appellation.
- Woolf
Origin:
Variation of Wolf, animal nameDescription:
The spelling Woolf inevitably conjures writer Virginia. If you're a fan of Mrs. Dalloway and the Bloomsbury group, Woolf might be a creative way to combine a trendy animal name with an original honor name. Woolf was the surname of Virginia's husband, Leonard.
- Millay
Origin:
English literary nameDescription:
Pretty and distinctive choice for poetry lovers.
- Burns
Origin:
Scottish and EnglishMeaning:
"from the burnt house"Description:
The final s turns this name into a manservant.
- Coleridge
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"ridge where charcoal is burnt"Description:
Name of a poet, this will be one for consideration by literary parents. The name fits well with the current trend towards surnames as given names, but beware the three syllable pronunciation, which may be a trap for the poetically disinclined.
- Amis
Origin:
Literary nameDescription:
The surname of father-son British writers Kingsley and Martin could work very well as a first, though its Amy connection makes it sound a tad feminine.
- Forster
Origin:
English, variation of FosterMeaning:
"scissors maker"Description:
Forster, a variation of Foster or potentially even Forester, is associated with British novelist E.M. Forster, author of A Passage to India, Howard's End, and A Room with a View. But if you choose Forster, you'd always have to force that 'r'.
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