UK Baby Names

Though it sounds like Karen, this spelling makes the name more distinctive.

This anagram of Agnes is not related to that name; rather it comes from the Gaelic word seang meaning "slender".

Old-fashioned, conjuring up an ardent suitor in a bow tie and straw boater.

A few boys have adopted fabrics like Denim and Suede; here's a singular one for the girls, with a distinctively silky sheen.

This musical choice fits right in with all the new hard-working Millers and Gardeners. It's also a Scottish demonym, referring to an inhabitant of the historic Scottish county of Fife.

A neglected surname name that could substitute for the more common Gordon, which has in the past associated with the milk company and Elsie the Cow.

The x gives it some modern cool, but the bury part buries it.

Dickson's nickname problem keeps it from having the upside possibility of similar names like Jackson and Harrison. If you're looking for fresh baby names to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, consider Dixon. Or better, Richardson.

Most color names, like Scarlet and Violet, are definitely female, but not this one. Brown is as rich and warm as the tone it denotes, though we must admit the Italian version Bruno has more spark and substance.

See TRICIA.

This name has been off the USA Top 1000 list since before 1900, but it has some great musical credentials: consider American blues singer Alger "Texas" Alexander and country music legend Pat Alger.

Haylee dropped out of the Top 500 for the first time since 1992 recently, in step with a decline by Hailey (though the alternative Hadley is still near the Top 100). For some, Haylee is one E too many, but it reflects the broader popularity in -lee suffixes.

Sims is a medieval English surname, also found in Ireland and Scotland, that has many variations all deriving from the Hebrew Biblical name Simon. Sims is a simple, straightforward, yet proper-sounding name that works well as a first, whether you find it in your family tree or pluck the idea from someone else's. It was used for only five boys in the US in 2013.

Islay is the name of a Hebridian island famous for its whisky. Don't be fooled by the "y" at the end - this name is pronounced exactly like the more well-known Isla.

Minta is an eighteenth century short form of a literary beauty still used in England today, but yet to be discovered by American baby namers. It has a fresh and dainty feel.

Although this was the surname of a rugged World War II admiral, these days it has a feminine feel.

Stowe, the name of a beautiful mountain town in Vermont as well as the surname of the great author Harriet Beecher, is one of the oldest last names on record. The meeting place the name Stowe refers to is part of a church. Stowe might make a distinctive and meaningful middle name for skiers or Uncle Tom's Cabin fans.

Prideaux is a Cornish place name and surname that is occasionally attested as a girls' first name. It likely stems from the French phrase "pré de eaux", meaning meadow of waters. For fans of Margaux, Prideaux might be a less-common and very pretty alternative.

The name recently given to their daughter by Susan and Robert Downey, Jr. is pronounced like Avery and may be seen as a kree8tiv spelling variation of that popular unisex name or a girlish short form of Avraham, the Biblical Hebrew form of Abraham.