UK Boy Names

Has diverse links to a Groucho Marx character, a bouncing ball, and late performance artist Spalding Gray.

Possible alternative to Anderson.

Not quite as over-the-hill as Herman, but not far behind either.

All the Fitz names are hard to carry, but this one has a wonderful meaning and might be a good middle name choice to honor a brilliant lineage.

Upper-crusty hotelish surname.

Mailer is one of the more unusual of the on-trend occupational surnames. Recommended for fans of the macho writer Norman Mailer.

Quintessentially, stylelessly preppy.

One of the most distinguished names in literature could become a hero name in a family of poetry-lovers -- or be seen as a trendy new occupational name.

The mute, horn-honking Marx Brother's real name was Adolph -- so Harpo represented a huge step up. Also, it's Oprah's production company (her name spelled backward).

Somewhat dashing surname, but with serious teasing potential.

Try Simon. Or Homer.

Easy (Ezekiel) Rawlins is the hard-boiled detective created by Walter Mosley.

Only if it's a family name, and even then, better in the middle.

A better modern solution than Robert Jr. ; known to fiction readers via Canadian novelist Robertson Davies.

An old name still occasionally heard in the U.K., but still and perhaps forever a foreigner in the U.S. Can be spelled Ranulf.

Alaska's second most populous city makes a baby name with a preppy, even aristocratic, flavor.

Fortitude is the kind of virtue name the Puritans favored, but would not be easy for a modern boy to carry. Stick with something a little simpler than Fortitude, like Justice or True.

A once-popular nickname for Albert and Bertram now being polished up by hip Brits, but still hibernating in the Land of Nerd over here.

The name of the patron saint of Wales is virtually unknown in the US under this spelling. There were no baby boys named Dewi or Dewie in the US in 2021, though there were 35 named Dewey. Incredibly enough, Dewey ranked among the US Top 1000 for an entire century, from 1887 to 1986, reaching as high as Number 19 in 1898.