Animal Names for Boys

Once a staple of the 1920s, like Leroy and Elwood, Elroy is languishing in style limbo now. One feature that might make it worth a second glance is its royal meaning, for those looking for a vintage twist on names like Royal and Reign. If you're in search of unique vintage baby names, this may be one for your list.

An Irish surname — the Anglicized form of O’Duibhgeannáin — that would make a one-of-a-kind first name, unless you count the character in Wes Anderson's first film, Bottle Rocket. For fans of the auteur, perhaps Dignan is a better name for a pet — it may be extra appropriate to use the nickname Diggy.

English surname most notably used by Ashley Hebert for her son in 2014.

Affable and creative and perfectly able to stand alone; there's nothing Scroogish about it, even though it is usually spelled Eben.

The name of several rulers of Parthia and of the ill-fated admirer of the princess of Persian Armenia, Shirin. The story of Farhad's love for Shirin is one of the most famous stories in Persian literature.

Dark.

A cool and rare Welsh nickname, though it may put some people in mind of the Banana Boat Song.

A Top 100 choice in Northern Ireland, Caolán shares many fashionable sounds with names like Cayden and Callan, but remains virtually unknown in the US.

Aatos is currently popular among baby boys in Finland.

Sounds just like its meaning.

Had a burst of popularity in 2000 when the controversial case of the Cuban boy Elián González was in the news; his name combined his parents': Elizabeth and Juan.

Aryeh, which can also be spelled Arye or Arieh, is a Biblical name sometimes heard in modern Israel. In the US, this is the most popular spelling by far, given to 100 boys last year. But the girls' form Ariyah is much more popular than that, given to nearly 500 baby girls.

A mash-up of Ezra and the popular -en ending for boys' names. It may be a modern invention, but Ezren sounds legitimate and very on-trend.

Isael and more particularly spelling variation Izael are among the fastest-rising boys' names in the US.

Japanese-born fashion designer Issey Miyake, known for his techno-clothes, could provide baby naming inspiration.

Shakespeare seems to have coined this name for the Prince of Bohemia in his late tragicomedy The Winter's Tale. It's rarely been used as a name for a real person, but we think it has potential. The flowery flor sound will appeal to parents looking for less conventionally masculine boys names, but the "Z" gives it an edge and cool factor lacking in, say, Florian. Plus, the Shakespeare connection obviously gives it a lot of literary cred.

Pronounced CHY, it's a word name meaning tea in many Eastern languages. The Hebrew name is pronounced without the C as HAI.

Cabot is an attractive English surname associated with the daring early Italian-born British explorer known as John Cabot; his birth name was Giovanni Caboto.

If Hunter just isn't full enough for you, place name Huntington might be a better option.

A bit stiff and formal for American use.