By Pamela Redmond Satran 　　George vaulted halfway up our boys’ popularity list for 2013, thanks to the naming of the little British Prince George Alexander Louis.  George went from Number 92 for the first half of the year all the way up to Number 56 at the year’s three-quarter mark. 　　At the...

　　by Pamela Redmond Satran 　　A friend of ours recently named his baby Jake.  Not Jacob, just Jake. 　　Why name the kid Jacob, he and his wife reasoned, when they weren’t really crazy about it and intended to call the little boy Jake all the time anyway? 　　Nickname names have become...

　　By Linda Rosenkrantz 　　Last week we looked at some neglected girls’ namesake names, now it’s the boys’ turn as we seek some equally distinctive names from American history and culture, names that could provide unique-ish options with interesting back-stories.  What’s especially evident here is how many of the unusual boys’...

　　By Anna Otto of Waltzing More Than Matilda 　　1. Caspian 　　Caspian is a character in C.S. Lewis’s fantasy series, The Chronicles of Narnia. As a young boy in Prince Caspian, he had to fight for his throne against his usurping uncle to become king of Narnia, and as a youth...

　　By Kelli Brady of  NameFreak!__ 　　Apart from the letter ‘U’, ‘O’ is the least likely vowel to be used at the beginning of names. In fact, there have been zero ‘U’ names in the Top 100 since 1880. On my blog I have already looked at I names, and putting...

　　Nameberry 9 by Abby Sandel, Appellation Mountain 　　A French film made its US debut this week.  What’s in a Name? takes us to a dinner party.  A happy couple announces that they’re expecting a son, and they’ve chosen a name. 　　Adolphe. 　　It’s as scandalous a choice in French as it...

　　Asher is back on top!  The hot biblical name has reclaimed the crown as Number One boys’ name from Finn, which snatched it last year. 　　Declan, an Irish choice that flirted with the Number One spot on Nameberry throughout 2013, finished at Number Two. 　　Finn’s star may be flickering, but...

　　By Abby Sandel of Appellation Mountain 　　What’s the 2014 equivalent of the old phrase “Every Tom, Dick, and Harry?” 　　Every Aiden, Mason, and Jake? 　　Every Max, Zac, and Jackson? 　　The most popular names for boys used to hold steady for years.  In 1932, the ten most popular names for boys...

　　By Tara Ryazansky 　　The men hoping to compete for the US Olympic Team have names that are just as winning as the women.’s  I put together a list of some boy names that might win over new parents in 2014. 　　Leif– As in Biathlon team member, Leif Nordgren.  This name...

　　By Linda Rosenkrantz 　　When we hear the phrase ‘virtue names’ we tend to think first and foremost of the girls—Faith, Hope and Grace, Prudence and Patience.  But some parents are beginning to acknowledge that there are good boys as well as girls, and considering some of the old male virtue...

　　By Denise K. Potter 　　This Sunday February 2nd, the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos will go head-to-head at Super Bowl XLVIII. And while the U.S.A. is in a complete football frenzy, loyal name nerds everywhere will be questioning which team wins—the name-game that is. Take a look at the 12...

　　By Leslie McLean 　　I conceived Owen through donor insemination on a gorgeous early February night of great tenderness.  His birthday would have been in October. 　　We can see him, a bit like Gilbert on Leave it to Beaver, a child version of Lawrence O’Donnell on MSNBC.  White blonde, serious, outdoorsy.  A...

　　By Linda Rosenkrantz 　　On previous Presidents’ Days, we’ve looked at the first and last names of the Chief Executives, their wives and their children’s appellations.  So what’s left? 　　Their middle names! And in this era of middle-name mania, we think they merit our attention. 　　Many of the early people in...