This title name definitely makes a statement. Will Admiral fit in with the Saints, Kings, and Knights joining the playground?

Admiral

AKRON

Refers, in literal terms, to a curved line -- as in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s famed "arc of justice." Could also be used as a reference to Joan of Arc -- Arc being, there, derived from her father's name, rather than a place -- or, conceivably, to Noah's Ark.

Arden is a gender-neutral name that's sleek and stylish but always seems to bob just below the surface of popularity, despite ticking all the boxes with its fashionable two-syllable, N-ending shape and its awesome nature-inspired meanings. In the 2021 US statistics, 41 percent of the babies named Arden were boys to 59 percent girls.

 A locational surname name deriving from several places in England, there are multiple legitimate derivations for this name. One is from Old English earn "eagle" + denu "valley", while another is from the Celtic ard meaning "high".

 For literature lovers: Arden is the name of the magical forest in Shakespeare's As You Like It (Shakespeare's mother's name was Mary Arden), and it also appears in the name and titular character of a poem by Tennyson, Enoch Arden.

Arden

The name of the ship sailed by Jason in his search for the Golden Fleece is now more often used for starch, trucks, and heavy machinery. 

Argo

The great philosopher's name is commonly used in Greek families, and is one that could work for daring, philosophy inclined American ones. 

Aristotle

Sounds a bit like Harley pronounced with a cockney accent. 

Arley

As trendy as the chic Colorado ski resort and film festival, Aspen is fast becoming more popular for girls than for boys, but this nature name would work equally well for either.

Aspen

Atlas is one of those names that was previously thought too powerful for a baby boy, who would have to be strong enough to carry the world on his shoulders. Now Atlas has joined the pantheon of Greek and Roman god and goddess names in the realm of possibility, along with Mars, Zeus and Apollo.

 Atlas was one of the fast-rising names on the list in recent years in the USA, jumping from oblivion in 2012 into the Top 500 in 2015, and climbing several hundred places higher since then. Anne Heche was one of the first to make this audacious choice, but several celebrity parents have followed suit.

 As well as the mythological connection, Atlas is a cool geographical word name – perfect for the child of parents who love traveling or who hail from different parts of the globe.

Atlas

Alpha

Amble

Arbor

Ardent

Astro

Axle

An undiscovered option among occupational names, Banner has never been used for more than 100 baby boys in a single year. But Banner has undeniable charm, much due to its associations with fêtes and phrases like "a banner year".
 
Actor Jesse Eisenberg has a son named Banner, born in 2017.

Banner

Great Irish middle name choice for Shakespeare lovers. 

Bard

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 Krakowski could shoot it even higher. 
 Bennett Cerf was an eminent publisher--one of the founders of Random House--and renowned punster.
 Bennett is a popular surname, and has many noteworthy bearers, from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice family (with one 't') to indomitable singer Tony. Bennett has been used as a surname in England since the early thirteenth century.

Bennett

Reese Witherspoon's Deacon has opened this churchy direction for occupational names. It reentered the US Top 1000 in 2015.

Bishop

Among the coolest of the cool color names, particularly popular with celebs as a unisex middle name. 

Blue

For 007 fans, a great middle name choice -- or even a first. 

Bond

Boon

Has a bit of a hayseed image, and that oy sound is tough to work with. 

Boyd

A little heavy on the fiber content; we prefer Bram. But Bran is also the Celtic god of the underworld, whose symbol is the raven. It's probably not a coincidence that George R.R. Martin chose this name for the Stark heir who assumes the mystical title of "Three-Eyed Raven" in his A Song Of Ice And Fire books and HBO's Game of Thrones. The character's full name is Brandon.

Bran

One way to encourage some cheers for your little one, but not recommended. 

Bravo

For the parent who might also have Buck and Ryder on his list. 

Bronco

BROTHER

Comedian Roseanne Barr chose this macho nature name for her son. In the 18th century it was used to describe a dashing, fashionable dressed man. Buck fits in well alongside names like Beck, Jack and Huck. 

 The traditional name of the full moon in July, Buck Moon, relates to the fact that the antlers of male deer reach their peak growth around this time of year.

Buck

We don't see that bright a future for this one either. 

Butler

Beaumont

Bedlam

Bounty

Bowser

Boxer

Brazen

Brew

Cannon sits amongst other weapon names like Colt, Pistol, Lance, and Remington. Definitely a name that offers bombast.

Cannon

Captain

With the popular 'ash' sound and a contemporary feel, Cash is a widely used name in the US. Used occasionally before the 2000s, Cash really took off in 2003, following the death of American musical legend, Johnny Cash. 
 
Cash could be considered an old occupational name, derived from the Latin capsa, meaning someone who makes boxes. It also, and perhaps more obviously, is an English word for money, giving it a slightly celebrity-name vibe, along the lines of Saint, Sir, and Legendary. 
 An alternative origin for the name could be as a derivative of the Roman names, Cassius and Cassian, which are sometimes pronounced as "cash-us" or "cash-un". This could lend the name some additional history, along with the meaning "empty" "hollow" or "vain" (and therefore, maybe just a touch of irony).
 Celebrities including Annabeth Gish, Joshua Morrow, John Rich, Finola Hughes and Russell Young, have used Cash for their sons, and as of 2023, it is a Top 200 choice in the US.
 Until 2021, Cash was always the preferred spelling, however in more recent years, the variation Kash has ranked slightly higher. Given to over 1100 babies each year, Cash has seen a slightly decline, but nevertheless, remains in style.

Cash

Of the names derived from titles, this is one of the least obvious (unless you are of German extraction). Chancellor also has the attraction of offering the exciting - and very on-trend - nickname Chance. 

Chancellor

Chaplain

Chase, with its sleek and ultraprosperous aura, is redolent of the worlds of high finance and international banking. Chase has been well used during the last few decades, seen as a character on 24 and on several young-audience shows. 
 There are a disproportionate number of football stars name Chase.

Chase

Only if you're madly nostalgic for sixties TV. 

Chip

Clay is a rich, earthy one-syllable name with a southern-inflected handsome-rogue image, featured on soap operas and reality TV. Its longer forms are Clayton and Clayborne. 
 There have been TV characters called Clay on The Wire, Sons of Anarchy, and 13 Reasons Why, and the name's most prominent recent bearers are American Idol Clay (born Clayton) Aiken and Green Bay Packer linebacker Clay (born William Clay) Matthews.

Clay

Like Sky and Sunshine, this fluffy name from the hippie 1970s has floated back onto the naming radar. 

Cloud

Clovis

Commodore

The genial yet upscale and preppy Cooper was one of the first occupational last names to catch on -- and Cooper remains a pleasing option.
 Cooper began his rapid climb in 1982 and is a popular choice for baby boys. It is wildly popular in Australia, where in some areas Cooper is the top name.
 Two surnamed Coopers currently shining a spotlight on the name: Anderson and Bradley. Parents of Coopers include Melissa Rivers and Dylan Lauren.
 One caveat: Cooper is an extremely popular dog name.

Cooper

We all heard it on Seinfeld as the long-concealed first name of Kramer, then considered a punchline. Now some pioneering parents are embracing this expansive Greek name, which makes a creative and cool choice for a baby. Influential celebrity couple Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost chose it for their son, born in 2021, which will likely drive Cosmo up in popularity. In the UK, it currently ranks within the Top 1000 boy names and is trending upwards.

 In literature, Baron Cosmo Bradwardine is a character in Sir Walter Scott's novel Waverly and Cosmo Topper is the befuddled banker in Thorne Smith's humorous novel Topper. In modern times Cosmo has become the short form for Cosmopolitan – both the magazine and the cocktail. And for those wishing to honor a medic in the family, Cosmo is also the name of the Arabian-born patron saint of doctors.

Cosmo

Nobility names like Duke and Count seem to be forming a minitrend: actor Danny Bonaduce named his son Count Dante Jean-Michel Valentino. Beat that. Or wait: don't. 

Count

Since this is a word that pertains to cowardice, not the most appealing choice. Raven, Arven, and Haven might be more positive options for those drawn to the name by its sound.

Craven

CREE

Creed appeared on the US Top 1000 for the first time in over a century in 2016; it was the year's second-fastest-rising boys' name. It probably got a bump from the seventh movie in the Rocky series, called simply Creed. Some may know it from the character on the popular television show The Office.

Creed

From Haruki Murakami's Kafka on the Shore, the story of a boy named Kafka -- crow in Czech.

Crow

The name of the Roman god of love, the son of Venus, considered so romantic as to be unfit for mere mortals.  Yet now that Romeo and Venus herself are fair game for modern babies, why not Cupid?

Cupid

Perhaps too spicy for some, but this is a popular Gaelic surname that might appeal for those looking to honor a family branch or to fans of legendary British comedian Tim Curry.

Curry

Cantor

Castle

Cavalry

Chapel

Charger

Chatham

Chicory

Chief

Chimera

Chivalry

Cipher

Cline

Comet

Compass

Comrade

Conjure

Corporal

Courage

Covingtion

Cowl

Creek

Croft

Cumulus

Cypress

Czar

This name was transposed from the word for a church officer to a baby name when Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe chose it for their son, after a baseball player ancestor, and Don Johnson followed suit. Its popularity also got a boost from Nashville character Deacon Claybourne -- only to fall a bit in recent years.

Deacon

DECATUR

It's a hat, it's a race, and it's even been known to be a name. In Britain, it would be pronounced darby. 

Derby

Diesel, which you can think of as a word name for the fuel or as a German surname that derives from a pet form of Matthew or Mathias, is a new entry to the American name lexicon thanks to celebrities Jennie Finch and Casey Daigle, who chose it for their son, baby brother of Ace.  Diesel might also be thought of as one of the neo-macho names, joining such bros as Harley, Ranger, and Breaker.

Diesel

A relatively common surname, Dixon would be an inventive way to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, the X form a lot livelier than the Dickson spelling, just as Dix is a more modern short form than Dick; it would be right at home alongside Dax and Jax.
 But you don't need us to point out the considerable downside of this name. Besides being a sexual slang term, dick is also the most common epithet describing someone who's a jerk or a meanie (trying to avoid other unsavory words here). And Dix sounds exactly like dicks, which makes it not the least bit easier a name to carry these days than Dick.

Dixon

Fresh choice that could pick up where Dylan and Logan left off. 

Dolan

Swaggering, cutting-edge choice equally appropriate for both genders.  It's also very rare, given in the US in 2015 to only seven baby girls....and no recorded baby boys.  Do you want to be the first?

Domino

Dozier means a person who lives near the willows or reeds. It may be an occupational name referring to a basket maker.

Dozier

A simple one-syllable name that has been on the popularity list since the mid-1980s, Drake is most associated today with the single-named rapper (born Aubrey). The name peaked at Number 197 in 2010 and has since been on a slow decline, but it still can be counted among the stylish contemporary <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/boys-names/d">boy names starting with D</a>.

Drake

Incredibly handsome and super smooth, Duarte sounds like it came straight out of a romance novel. You almost wouldn’t believe it’s derived from Edward.

Duarte

EAGER

Although this is traditionally seen as a female name, via the classical mythological nymph who pined away for Narcissus until all that remained of her was a disembodied voice — it can also be used for boys. Remember that old song, 'Little sir echo, how do you do?'
 
Amanda Knox has a son named Echo and a daughter named Eureka.

Echo

Name long associated with eloquent Black Panther activist Eldridge Cleaver and jazz great Roy Eldridge. 

Eldridge

FAME

Because the legendary Faust sold his soul to the devil, few parents would choose this for a child, although Fausto is commonly heard in Italy and Spain. 

Faust

An English place name and surname that was in the Top 1000 for most of the early 20th century. Like Halston and Afton, it has a modern-sounding, understated style.
In British history, John Felton was a soldier who assassinated George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, in 1628.

Felton

FIDDLER

FORAY

Fox is one animal name backed by a longish tradition, and then popularized via the lead character Fox Mulder on X Files. Fox is simple, sleek, and a little bit wild, and could make an interesting middle name.
 It was reported that the TV character's first name was not a tribute to the Fox network which aired The X-Files, as often assumed; show creator Chris Carter said he had a childhood friend named Fox. Fox was one of the fastest-rising boys' names of 2016, perhaps because of the popularity of the X-Files revival.

Arista1900's list "Unique Names for Boys" of 225 great name ideas: Admiral - Zion!

Unique Names for Boys

Looking for something different? Try one of these.