Scottish Names for Boys

Taken from a Scottish town, a Scots surname, and the name of an intricately patterned fabric, Paisley means "church" or "cemetery." It ranks highly for girls and is in US Top 100. It may feel a little swirly to ever catch on for boys, but with gentle names like Rowan, Teddy, Casey, Emery, and Trace rising in the US, and Hadley, Oakley, McKenzie, and Presley ranking in the UK, Paisley might one day be considered for any gender. Paisley Currah, a political scientist, professor, author and advocate for transgender rights, is a notable bearer of the name.

Forbes is a business magazine in the U.S., long led by Malcolm Forbes, with a buttoned-down Brooks Brothers image. If you name your son Forbes, you're definitely implying a connection to the prominent and wealthy family -- which may be exactly what you're intending. But if you have a more down-to-earth image in mind, try Field.

Authentic Gaelic name with pronunciation problems in the US. In Scotland Eachann has been anglicized as Hector, not because of its sound, but because the Trojan hero Hector had the reputation as a mighty horseman.

Simplicity and pleasant associations give the word Bell real possibility as a first name -- but somehow it seems better for a girl, a la Belle.

British-sounding literary surname choice.

Laird is a Scottish title for the landed gentry – it ranks just below a Baron – with a pleasantly distinctive Scottish burr that must have appealed to Sharon Stone, who chose it for her son.

An interesting vowel combination lightens up Graham.

New Presidential name, if you're ready to move beyond Lincoln and Jefferson. At the turn of the last century, during the original McKinley's heyday, as a first name it almost reached the Top 100.

A common family name in Scotland, occasionally used as a first.

Macallister as a first name is attracting new attention as the name chosen by Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and venture capitalist Zack Bogue for their young son. Macallister is usually heard as a patronymic surname, meaning son of Alasdair or Alistair or any one of the spellings of the Scottish form of Alexander. Like all other names of this type, Macallister leads to the cute short form Mac.

Takes Monroe out of the Dead Presidents category and gives it new life.

Cameron is still more popular as a boy's name than a girls and this simple, snappy short form works well for either sex.

If you want a truly unusual name with authentic roots, this one certainly fits on both counts. Pronunciation may prove a stumbling block, however.

William was such a popular name, thanks to the Conquerer, in early England that it gave rise to a range of nicknames, including the distinctly Scottish Wilkie. Heard mostly as a surname these days, it's the middle name of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick's son James and the first name of writer Collins. While Wilkie could make an adorable short form for a little boy, we'd recommend a more substantial full name such as, well, William.

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.

This name of the largest river in Scotland, renowned for its salmon fishing, is usually thought of as a nickname for Taylor.

Great middle name choice for music lovers or those with Scottish roots, also spelled Fyfe.

An old-school great-grandpa name, like Irving and Ernest, that may just be ready for revival. It's also a well-known name in Hungary and elsewhere in central and eastern Europe. As a surname, it's associated with jazz sax player Booker Ervin.

When actress Deborah Kerr entered the scene, there was a great debate over her name's pronunciation. Car or Ker. Your choice.