Names That Mean Son

A matronymic surname derived from Emonie and Emeny, which are of uncertain origins.

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.

An ancient name that's been used by the Norwegian royal family; still popular there but not likely to appeal to many American parents.

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.

One of the most severely punished characters in Greek mythology, and the first two syllables don't help.

Colson was made familiar by author Colson Whitehead, who helped popularize the K variation as well. Both Colson and Kolson rapidly ascended the charts in 2017, the year following the release of Whitehead's celebrated book The Underground Railroad.

Author Colson Whitehead put his name on the map, and now variations such as Colsen and Colsyn are shooting up along with it.

This name of an early Greek Christian philosopher comes with a wizened, ancient air about it. Still, perhaps the nickname Ari might help it work for a baby to grow into.

A mostly undiscovered alternative to the ultra-popular Colton; just 80 baby boys were named Coleson in 2016. It's also a surname name in its own right.

This Welsh surname might be an interesting alternative to the popular Evan, though that Bev beginning conjures up a fifty-five-year-old woman named Beverly.

One part fantastical literary invention and one part Ancient Greek, Atreyus is a new and rising name for boys. It's could be viewed as a combination of Atreus, an Ancient Greek name, and Atreyu, created by German author Michael Ende for his novel The Neverending Story.

Atari the baby name is directly correlated with Atari the company. It joined the baby name charts in 1979 when the popular video game Space Invaders was released. It was given to small numbers of boys and girls for the next few years and reemerged in 2006 following Atari Bigby's NFL draft.

This surname name fits in with current favorites like Hudson, but is much less common as a given name. It's widely familiar thanks to the late Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets.

Used quietly on boys in the US since the early 20th century, Mckenzie was abruptly overtaken by the Mackenzie spelling back in 1973 when actress Mackenzie Phillips introduced the name as a possibility for girls. While Mckenzie has never matched its sibling spelling in popularity, it nevertheless climbed the charts in its wake, peaking in 2000 at #133.

More commonly spelled JUDD, this is a strong but sensitive short form that can easily stand on its own.

Not often heard on girls, although Hillary Scott used it as the middle name for her daughter Betsy in 2018.

The infamous name Dracula technically means "son of Dracul" but since Dracul means devil in modern Romanian, we thought we'd cut right to the chase.

Royce is a grandpa name with an upscale link to Rolls Royce, and a surprising rise for girls since the early noughties. Rebel Wilson has a daughter named Royce Lillian.

No competition for Jackson.

The eponymous TV hero has inspired a handful of parents to use his name for their sons. Macgyver first appeared on the charts in 1989, four years after the original television series began.