Names That Mean Son

  1. Kerrigan
    • Origin:

      Irish surname
    • Meaning:

      "son of Ciaragán"
    • Description:

      An attractive Irish surname that is used more often among girls — likely due to the feminine associations with Kerry.
  2. Price
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "son of Rhys"
    • Description:

      Some names referring to expensive things -- Tiffany, Armani, Porsche -- are in fact declasse, but Price transcends that label with its simplicity and strength.
  3. Olsen
    • Origin:

      Scandinavian
    • Meaning:

      "Olaf's son"
    • Description:

      Too tied to those well-publicized twins.
  4. Ivey
    • Origin:

      Surname name, variation of Ivy
    • Meaning:

      "son of Ive; person from Ivoy; ivy plant"
    • Description:

      Ivey can be considered an alternate spelling of the botanical name Ivy, but it also has separate origins as a surname. For the Anglo-Saxon Ivey line, Ivey means "son of Ive," while for the English-Norman Iveys, it means "person from Ivoy," a commune in the Cher department of France.
  5. Yancy
    • Origin:

      American variation of Jansen, Dutch, Native American
    • Meaning:

      "son of Jan; yankee"
    • Description:

      Yancy has two separate American origins — first as the Native American term for "Yankee," and second as the Americanized variation of the common Dutch surname Jansen. Jan being the Dutch form of John, Yancy could work to honor anyone in your life with a John-related name.
  6. Bowen
    • Origin:

      Welsh
    • Meaning:

      "son of Owen"
    • Description:

      Bowen is a Celtic surname representing two separate Celtic strains, one Welsh and one Irish, and entered the US Top 1000 (for boys) for the first time in 2011. It comes complete with cute nicknames Bo and Winnie.
  7. Jiro
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "second son"
    • Description:

      Commonly used Japanese name -- and not only for a second son.
  8. Thompson
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "son of Tom"
    • Description:

      Thompson is not as popular as Jackson or Harrison, but a novel way to circumvent Junior for the son of a Thomas.
  9. Nelson
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "son of Neil"
    • Description:

      Nelson on a boy is a steady, somewhat formal classic. On a girl, it's fresher, less expected, and could be shortened to Nell or Nellie.
  10. Manzo
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "third son"
    • Description:

      Strong and vital Asian birth order name.
  11. Ichiro
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "firstborn son"
    • Description:

      Ichiro is a good classic choice for the first boy in a Japanese family.
  12. Macallister
    • Origin:

      Scottish
    • Meaning:

      "son of Alasdair"
    • Description:

      Macallister as a first name is attracting new attention as the name chosen by Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and venture capitalist Zack Bogue for their young son. Macallister is usually heard as a patronymic surname, meaning son of Alasdair or Alistair or any one of the spellings of the Scottish form of Alexander. Like all other names of this type, Macallister leads to the cute short form Mac.
  13. Benjámin
    • Origin:

      Hungarian variation of Benjamin, Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "son of the right hand"
  14. Mckenzie
    • Origin:

      Scottish
    • Meaning:

      "son of Kenneth"
    • Description:

      Derived from a Scottish surname, Mckenzie is an anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Coinnich, Coinnich being one of the original Gaelic forms of Kenneth. As a given name, it took off for girls in the US in the 70s, thanks to actress Mackenzie Phillips, and it has always been less popular for boys. While Mackenzie was chosen for 86 boys in the US last year, the Mckenzie spelling was used for just 7.
  15. Mackenna
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "son of the handsome one"
    • Description:

      Although the Mc or Mac prefix always means "son of", the first names McKenna and MacKenna are used in the US exclusively for girls, with the McKenna spelling outpacing this one 14 to 1. There are no boys recorded with either spelling of the name.
  16. Fitzroy
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "son of the king"
    • Description:

      An English surname originally given to the illegitimate sons of a monarch. It might be a nice middle name choice to honor an ancestral Roy, though as a first, it does have a cool meaning.
  17. Cavanaugh
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "born handsome or son of Caomhan "
    • Description:

      Pleasant Irish last name that could be a more masculine alternative to the overused Cassidy. Early kings of Leinster bore the name, which relates to the first name Caomhan or Kevin and can also be spelled Kavanagh, Cavanagh, Cavenagh, and Kavanaugh.
  18. Shiro
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "fourth son"
  19. Dixon
    • Origin:

      Scottish
    • Meaning:

      "son of Dick"
    • Description:

      A relatively common surname, Dixon would be an inventive way to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, the X form a lot livelier than the Dickson spelling, just as Dix is a more modern short form than Dick; it would be right at home alongside Dax and Jax.
  20. Sune
    • Origin:

      Swedish and Danish
    • Meaning:

      "son"
    • Description:

      Sune was derived from the Old Norse word sunr, meaning "son".