Animal Names for Boys

The association with the Cuban leader Castro is still strong, but he's by no means the only Fidel. This name was in the Top 1000 for over 80 years, from 1919 to 2005. From the late Latin name Fidelis, meaning "faithful", at its heart it has an uplifting meaning.

Unique baby name and poetic Gallic choice. Guillaume Apollinaire was a French poet and novelist active in the early 20th century arts community, who is said to have coined the terms cubism and surrealism. He based his unique surname de plume on his Polish middle name, Apolinary.

Bestselling author Amor Towles, who wrote Rules of Civility and A Gentleman in Moscow introduced this elegant and meaningful name to the lexicon. Names that mean love -- Amory, Amias, and Amoris are other similar choices -- always have a deep appeal.

Those "Where's Gretel?" jokes will get old pretty fast.

This form of Theodoric, familiar via Marlene, is a possible German import. It is an Anglicized ancestor of Derek and all its variations. A noted bearer was acclaimed classical German baritone and conductor Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, and there have been Dietrichs in Henry James's The Princess Casamassima,/em and more recently on the TV show Psych.

Although it looks like an English placename, the surname Crowley is an anglicization of the Irish O Cruadhlaoich. A famous bearer was the occultist Aleister Crowley, and it also appears on characters in Supernatural and The Walking Dead. It has started to get a little use in recent years, as part of the new wave of names ending in -ley.

Muhammad approved all ninety-nine attributes of Allah as worthy names, and this is one of the most popular. It was in the US Top 1000 for the first time since 1998 in 2016, when it was one of the 10 fastest-rising boys' names. Perhaps the most well known person in America with the name is former Houston Rockets center and Basketball Hall of Famer Hakeem Olajuwon.

The Basque name, meaning shadow, has the virtue of having both an interesting meaning and an obvious pronunciation.

Unless it runs in your family, or Alexander Hamilton is your particular hero, you might consider something less imposing -- and without the teasable nickname Ham.

Ceri is traditionally a Welsh masculine name which historically has been Anglicised to "Kerry", but we love the Welsh original. Famous Ceris include British painter Ceri Richards and New Zealand soccer player Ceri Evans. Be aware that Ceri is sometimes used as a female name, both as a standalone name and as a shortening of the Welsh female name Ceridwen.

Laid-back and humble, with a distinctive down-home charm.

Fiery sound and uplifting meaning, but it's also among the Top 100 dog names. Spelled Fiyero, it's the hero of the book and musical "Wicked."

More familiar and melodic to the American ear than either Hans or Hansen, and some might attach it to the three-brother pop-rock band called Hanson.

The more popular Greer spelling might lean feminine, however, Grier sees more even distribution between the sexes. It is given to a small handful of babies each year, and for every one Grier, there are three Greers.

This is the second-to-the-original spelling of a name that's part Jersey Shore, part upper-crust British. Dominick gets you more directly to nickname Nick.

The Elysian Fields of Greek mythology was the home of the afterlife for the blessed. As spiritual names and mythological names continue to rise, Elysian is a name to watch.

Popular among Hispanic parents, it explains the source of the nickname Gonzo.

One of the oft-mocked Zappa kid names; it supposedly was a nickname his father had for his wife's pinkie toe.

Variation of the popular religious name, boosted by megastar Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo.