1450+ English Names (with Meanings & Popularity)

No low self-esteem for this kid, or so his parents hope.

Boo as a first name first achieved notoriety as the name of the child-man in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird. Arthur "Boo" Radley was meant to be frightening, but only in a simple, non-threatening way. More recently, Boo has been used as the middle name of one of chef Jamie Oliver's children and the nickname in the middle of television's Honey Boo Boo. Boo is also the name of the world's cutest dog and of the adorable little girl in Monsters Inc. In a more basic way, Boo is a term of endearment.

Peaked in the 1940s, but still an amiable classic, a la Joe and Tom -- though rarely used on its own.

Doe is a soft and gentle-eyed middle name possibility and, like Fawn, one of the few animal names open to girls.

This occupational surname could find new life with those wishing to honor someone in their heritage who was connected to the tough-as-nails breed that was the pre-modern coal miner. Coll and Collie are some sweet nickname options to tone down the formality of this name.

He can get it for you wholesale.

Loyal is one of the few virtue names suitable for boys, an honorable and principled Boy Scout-esque appellation with a surprisingly long and distinguished history.

One of the first reality show-inspired names (he was a Texas hunk on an early season of "Survivor"); hugely trendy for boys but just starting for girls.

If you use this for a boy, it had better be a family name, hidden away in the middle.

A compound name with an old-fashioned ring. It only first appeared on the US Top 1000 in 2012. Annalie is a somewhat different name that is nevertheless pronounced the same.

If Dayton, like Trenton and Camden, is finding favor with parents, it's more because of its popular two-syllable surname feel and -on ending than the industrial city in Ohio.

The Brits say BARK-lee, but we pronounce it the same as the name of the California college: either way it's quite pretentious and of another era.

On the staff of a manor house.

A friendly sounding surname name reminiscent of the increasingly popular Marlow and Harlow. British musician Gary Barlow is a notable namesake.

Joss is more fashionable than Jocelyn or Josslyn. This is a short form that could be used independently, a la the singer Joss Stone. One of a troupe of adorable boyish nicknames newly fashionable for girls a la Lou and Charlie.

Prissy, no matter how you spell it.

Fielding is a surname style name, originally given to someone who lived in the country or worked in the fields, however it might also be considered a word name relating to sports (cricket and baseball specifically) or with the term for dealing with something difficult by evading it.

A surname style name that could make an alternative to Wayne or Wyatt.

With Tillie a new favorite of avant-garde parents, the British music-hall Tessie might conceivably follow.

Though Embry became famous as the name of a boy werewolf in Twilight, we think its Em- beginning and -y ending make it perfectly appropriate for a girl. You might consider it as an alternative to Emma, Emily, or Aubrey. Embry or Embury is an established English surname.