1900+ Four Letter Boy Names

Rihanna put Rose on the map for baby boys when she used it as the middle name for her son Riot. If James is a modern favorite middle name for girls, why not Rose for boys?

Has that blunt masculine feel -- à la Cole and Kyle -- that many modern parents are drawn to.

Short form of Adebayo

Edison's middle name is a fabulous option for parents looking for something with history and a soft sound. This could be the name you're looking for if you like Tesla's scientific pedigree but think that it has become too corporate with the advent of Elon Musk's company.

Although usually spelled without the final 'e', this version commemorates tennis immortal Arthur Ashe. Seth Meyers' son Ashe was given his wife's maiden name.

Lindsay Lohan and Bader Shammas chose the name Luai for their Dubai-born son — a perfect mini name with cross-cultural appeal.

This Dutch form of the ancient Greek saints' name Tycho is in the Top 100 in The Netherlands. While largely unknown in the English-speaking world, it's got a cool sound and ancient roots, which equals a winning choice.

Dave is the ultimate good guy name, but where father name David is still holding onto a spot in the Top 20, Dave -- widely used as an independent name in the middle of the last century -- dropped off the Top 1000 a few decades ago and shows no signs of a comeback. Baby Davids today, often named for dad or grandpa, are more likely to be called David than Dave.

Being a modern word, Halo didn’t become used as a name until around the nineteenth century. Halo is now mostly given to girls, and has become more common since the Halo video game series was released in 2001, in which Halo rings are huge structures used as weapons, but do have a religious connection. A space age virtue name and possible honour name for Gloria.

Zevi is an alternative transcription of the Hebrew name Zvi or Tzvi, the latter of which is a Top 100 pick in Israel. It's a cool, sharp-sounding name which would make for a great distinctive alternative to Levi.

Until recently, Vernon and its short form Vern seemed like grandpa names not ready for revival, but now we can see it happening. Never the popular, Vern works particularly well as a middle name.

Riot has all the sounds of a trendy name — the first syllable that of trendy choices like Ryder, Ryker, and Rylan, rhyming with Wyatt. But the strong negative connotations of the word, suggesting violence, turn many (but not all) parents away from Riot as a baby name. Ryatt, one step removed, is more common.

This mini name is more spunky than Zack or Zeke, but shares those well-loved sounds. In Ethiopia, Zeki means "pure", and is pronounced "zeh-KEE", with emphasis on the second syllable. With the rise of trending Zakai and similar names into the US charts, Zeki has potential.

Iain, this authentic Gaelic form of John, has been well used in Scotland since the early twentieth century, used concurrently with the shortened Ian spelling, but is rarely seen in the US.

The extra 'T' makes this nickname name a little more substantial.

Whether you think of it as Cale with a K, or a pet form of Kalen or Kaleb, this is just the kind of short, synthetic name finding a lot of favor now, but remember -- it's also the name of a vegetable.

Manly almost to the point of macho.

Zayn and the more Western-friendly Zain sound exactly like the popular Zane but have a different root, in Arabic and African cultures. The name was made familiar to Europeans and Americans by British singer-songwriter Zayn, born Zain Malik. This is an easily-translated choice for a family that wants to bridge cultures, but you have to accept that people will be forever spelling the name "wrong".

Quintessentially sweet and innocent unisex name of the 1960s and 70s, now gone the way of hot pants and disco balls.

Poet is a new entry in both the trendy word and occupational categories as well as a member of the growing group of gender neutral names. A handful of baby boys received the name in the US last year. A perfect choice, especially in the middle, for the child of writers or those with a poetic bent. And Po is an adorable nickname for either gender.