User-created list
Scientist names
Across 8 pages
of 8
Jan
Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, and Catalan variation of John, Hebrew
"God is gracious"
A standard form of John in Dutch, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Czech, Polish, Slovene, German, and Catalan. Properly pronounced yahn (in most of these languages), most Americans will still equate it…
Tim
Diminutive of Timothy, Greek
"honoring God"
Tim is a boyish short form occasionally given on its own. There were 37 baby boys named Tim in the US last year, versus over 1700 named Timothy.
Willem
Dutch variation of William
"resolute protector"
Common in Holland, the appealing Willem (as in de Kooning and Dafoe) makes William fresh and distinctive.
Cornelis
Cornelis is the Dutch form of the Latin name Cornelius, which originated from the Roman clan name Cornelii. This masculine name carries a sense of heritage and strength, derived from the Latin word…
Corrado
Italian variation of Conrad
A Latinate name with a lot of dash and bravado.
Petri
Petri is a masculine name with Finnish and Scandinavian origins, functioning as the Finnish form of Peter. Derived from the Greek 'Petros' meaning 'rock' or 'stone,' it carries connotations of…
Barton
English
"from the barley settlement"
More user-friendly, though less substantial, than Bartholomew.
Greg
Greg is a masculine name that originated as a diminutive of Gregory, which comes from the Greek name Gregorios, meaning 'watchful' or 'alert.' While Gregory has been used since early Christian times,…
Jacques
French variation of James and Jacob
"supplanter"
Regal and ancient feeling, Jacques has been declining in popularity in its native France, but in the UK, it saw a surprising revival in 2022. Jumping from somewhere around the #2500 mark straight to…
Emil
Latin
"rival"
Derived from the Latin word aemulus , Emil is a name with international appeal. Concise and sturdy but with the gentle Em sound, Emil is popular across Europe, from Azerbaijan to Finland, from…
Murray
Scottish
"settlement by the sea"
Murray, you may be surprised to discover, is a Scottish surname name --that of an ancient noble clan--with a sea-swept meaning, and just could be in the next wave of reevaluated grandpa names.…
Willis
Diminutive of William, German
"resolute protection"
A common surname that was popular as a given name in the late 19th and early 20th century, Willis dropped off the US Top 1000 back in the early 90s, just as alternative William diminutive, Liam,…
Melba
Modern invented name
Australian opera singer Nellie Melba—self-named for her hometown of Melbourne—inspired this now-dated name more associated today with a peach dessert and dietetic toast.
Sidney
English from French
"Saint Denis"
A contraction name, Sidney comes from Saint Denis and is related to Dioynsius, the Greek god of fertility and wine, although another theory is that it derived from an Anglo-Saxon place name, meaning…
Carsten
Low German and Nordic variation of Christian
This Nordic-sounding name is ripe for wider usage, especially as a fresh alternative to Christian or similar-sounding Carl.
Siegfried
German
"victorious peace"
Also spelled Sigfrid, this hefty German name has an appropriately majestic meaning: "victorious peace". Fittingly, a famous bearer was the English World War I poet and pacifist Siegfried Sassoon.…
Gerhard
German variation of Gerard
In its native Germany, Gerhard was very popular a hundred years ago and is now rather old-fashioned. It isn't much used by English speakers either, but has a certain clunky charm about it.
Dieter
German, diminutive of Dietrich
Dieter is a classic German name that got lots of satiric exposure via Mike Myers on "Saturday Night Live" a few years back. If mispronounced, it could conceivably be read as someone on a diet.
Lothar
German
"famous army"
Lothar is cloddish, till you add a dashing io to the end...
Pascual
Spanish form of Pascal
"Easter"