Five Letter Boy Names

Inventive name for the child of a writer.

Also spelled Madog, which was the name of an early Welshman, Madog ap Owain Gwynedd, reputed to have been the first European to discover North America in 1155. Maddox, the name of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's oldest child, is a stronger and more familiar choice.

Nakoa is a Top 100 name for boys in Hawaii. It became more widely known after actors Lisa Bonet and Jason Mamoa chose it for their son.

The charming vintage nature and color name Hazel has become popular for girls, but more than 30 baby boys were named Hazel in the US in a recent year. In fact, it's not a new thing for boys to be called Hazel. It ranked in the US Top 1000 from the late 1800s to the 1930s, peaking in 1891 when it briefly entered the Top 500, and again in 1920 when it was given to nearly 80 boys.

Particularly popular in Turkey towards the end of the 20th century, this was the name of a 14th-century sultan of the Ottoman Empire. The name Orhan jumped in use in 2022, given to 81 babies in the US, while in the UK, it was one of the fastest rising boys names, jumping an impressive 470 places up the charts.

Unisex Lane is a hit for boys in the last few decades, remaining around the 200s in popularity. Laine may lean a bit more feminine, but still has that unisex feel.

The ancient name Albus has modern currency as the first name of the headmaster of Harry Potter's Hogwarts, more formally known as Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. Can Albus work if you're missing the long white beard and the magic wand? Maybe, though it might be a heavy mantle for a Muggle child to wear.

Also, unfortunately, better known as a chocolate syrup. Borden and Bosco could play well together.

Your friendly next-door neighbor...not your baby. Although Larry was once one of the most popular boys' names starting with L, that title now belongs to Liam.

A strong Māori nature name, famously borne by director Taika Waititi, who is of Māori descent.

This aggressive baby boy name has been sitting at the bottom of the charts since 2008.

Cherokee option for a spring-born child.

Alois and Aloysius are variation of Louis. Alois ranked in the US Top 1000 until the 1930s, and still ranks in the Top 1000 in Germany. Last year in the US, only seven baby boys were named Alois.

Old saints' and popes' name that went to France in the 1920s with the Russian Ballets Russes; in its Russian form, Sergei, it retains an artistic, almost effete air.

A fresher spin on Jaxon, with built-in cool nickname Nix, and a great way to honor an ancestral Nick. But the association with disgraced former president Richard Nixon remains strong, which might explain why this otherwise bang-on-trend surname name has remained under the radar, peaking at #482 in 2017.

Now that the popularity of Brooke is waning, and surname style variant Brooks is on the rise, Brook seems live a newly fresh nature-inspired option.

With parents beginning to show an interest in virtue names for boys, this Puritan favorite just might be revived, for what could be more admirable than nobility in terms of having strength of character, dignity, and high moral ideals?

Sounds like Horace, looks like the head of a hawk on the body of a human.

Strong and unusual Scandinavian name, but with two possible pitfalls: people might mis-hear it as Aspen, or associate it with sports network ESPN. Variants include Esper and Esben.

Spike is part mid-century nickname-name, ala Buster or Buck, and part word name, with an all-over cool creative dude feel thanks to directors Spike Lee and Spike Jonze. Mike Myers named his son Spike. That's right: Spike and Mike. Spike qualifies as one of the distinctly American names.