930+ English Names for Boys

  1. Raleigh
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "meadow of roe deer"
    • Description:

      Attractive North Carolina place-name and surname of explorer Sir Walter Raleigh. Distinctive, classy-but-approachable choice for either sex.
  2. Prescott
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "priest's cottage"
    • Description:

      Prescott is one of several distinguished, upper-crusty surnames beginning with P.
  3. Win
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Winslow, Winthrop, or Winston
    • Description:

      Win is an upbeat, can-do name that can be a short form of one of the buttoned-up British choices above or can stand on its own. Welsh Wyn is another possibility.

      Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and singer Ciara named their son Win Harrison. Harrison is Wilson's father's first name.
  4. Watson
    • Origin:

      English and Scottish surname related to Walter
    • Meaning:

      "son of Wat"
    • Description:

      What with the resurgence of W names like Weston and Walter, the prominence of high profile actress Emma and golfer Bubba, and even the attention paid to Watson, the IBM computer on "Jeopardy" (named for IBM's founder, Thomas Watson) this name could be in line for a revival of its own.
  5. Gary
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "spearman"
    • Description:

      When Gary cracked the Top 10 in 1950, it was one of the first nonclassic boys’ names to do so, largely due to Gary (born Frank) Cooper, who was renamed after Gary, Indiana, his agent's hometown. Now, a 65 years later, Gary isn't particularly high in the charts, and has lost any glitter it had. May we suggest the fuller name Gareth?
  6. Palmer
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "pilgrim; one who holds a palm"
    • Description:

      Palmer is a name that derives from the fact that pilgrims often carried palms, thus the double meaning. It's a fresher sounding twist other surname style names, such as Spencer, Carter, Porter and Parker.
  7. Trenton
    • Origin:

      English, place-name
    • Meaning:

      "Trent's town"
    • Description:

      There's only one Trenton, New Jersey, but it's a widely used name, more for its fashionable -on ending than the reference to the city. Since 2007, however, Trenton has been on a steady decline. Trenten is another popular spelling.
  8. Pacey
    • Origin:

      English surname
    • Meaning:

      "of Paccius"
    • Description:

      The name of a character in Dawson's Creek, from a surname derived from the Gallo-Roman personal name Paccius, of unknown meaning.
  9. Carver
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "wood carver"
    • Description:

      Carver is an occupational name with an artistic bent, as is the newly arrived Painter, which has a fresher feel than the 1990's Carter. It also has eminent last-name links to botanist and educator George Washington Carver and short story master Raymond Carver.
  10. Lindsay
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "island of linden trees"
    • Description:

      Lindsay is one of the few truly unisex names (rather than being a name that has changed genders). Over time the ey ending was usually reserved for women and the ay ending reserved for men, although both spellings are overwhelmingly female these days.
  11. Fitzwilliam
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "son of William"
    • Description:

      The Christian name of the dashing Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice— it was his mother's maiden name— is just one of several Fitz names, including Fitzroy, Fitzgerald, Fitzpatrick, that could be used to honor a dad named William, Roy, Gerald or Patrick.
  12. Osmond
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "divine protection"
    • Description:

      Once too tightly tied to the aging musical clan featuring Donny and Marie, Osmond may now be able to escape that association and join the cooler group of Os and Oz names, which include Osgood, Ozias, and even Oswald.
  13. Coleman
    • Origin:

      English and Irish
    • Meaning:

      "little dove"
    • Description:

      The name of three hundred saints, a mustard, and your own baby boy. Coleman was off the US Top 1000 list for much of the 1960s and 1970s, but it was a mainstay before and has been for most years since. It could be an interesting way to honor a Colin or Cole.
  14. Langston
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "tall man's town"
    • Description:

      The great African-American Harlem Renaissance writer Langston Hughes put this one on the map; actor Laurence Fishburne adopted it for his now grown son, born in 1987. Despite these popular associations, the name didn't make it into the US Top 1000 until 2013. This name is even less used in England or Wales, where as recently as 2014 no births were registered using this name.
  15. Whittaker
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "white field"
    • Description:

      If you discount the connection to the controversial Whittaker Chambers in the days of the Red Scare, Whittaker is a pleasant enough British surname with the preppyish nickname Whit.
  16. Osric
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "divine ruler"
    • Description:

      Clad in armor. But while this name may have been forbiddingly antiquated not that long ago, the connection to the trendy nickname Os or Oz makes it a real possibility.
  17. Kipp
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "pointed hill"
    • Description:

      Full name that sounds more like a short form; more likely to be spelled Kip.
  18. Ramsay
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "low-lying land"
    • Description:

      A surname occasionally used as a first, as in former attorney general Ramsey Clark. This spelling is now closely associated with the psychopathic Game of Thrones villain Ramsay Snow (later Ramsay Bolton), and so is probably best avoided as long as the show and books are popular.
  19. Mick
    • Origin:

      English, diminutive of Michael
    • Description:

      Most often associated with Rolling Stone Jagger, Mick is also used as a generic, and derogatory, term for an Irishman.
  20. Dana
    • Origin:

      English, Slavic, Persian Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "from Denmark, gift, or wise"
    • Description:

      Baby girl Danas outnumber baby boys with the name nearly ten to one. But Dana is an attractive, sleek name that can certain work for babies of either gender.