Boys’ Names: Unusual, Stylish Picks

Looking for boys’ names that feel contemporary and stylish but that you won’t hear coming and going?  Here are our picks of unusual boys’ names – used for fewer than 100 boys, but at least 50 (those borders were picked to keep the collection manageable) – that are in step with today’s fashions.

It’s not so surprising, for the most part, that these names are used for so few boys.  And we don’t expect most of them to make huge leaps in popularity.  The few exceptions we think we’ll hear considerably more of in years to come: Wiley and Wylie, Ford, Fox, Lazarus, Chester, and West.

But we think any one of these unusual boys’ names would sound perfectly appropriate for a modern baby boy.  If you really want a name that’s different, look no further.

For more choices, see our complete list of boys’ names used for five or more babies in 2009.

The first group are traditional (more or less) first names. The number represents how many boys received the name last year.

The second group are nickname-names given on their own.  While you will hear these more than you’d think based on these numbers – there are thousands of Charles’s and Charlies in addition to the 90 Charleys, for instance – most of these are still stylish and unusual short forms.

Our last group are surname-names stylishly used for boys last year.  Skip the overused Logan and Jordan and use one of these instead: