Horse Names

Tornado first meant thunderstorm and only later came to mean whirlwind, the common modern meaning. More recently, Tornado is the first name of a tennis-playing teen whose sister is called the equally attention-getting Hurricane. Both names work for either gender, if you think you can withstand the storm jokes.

And her sisters, Stormy and Sunny.

Credit, of course, to the artist for inventing this secretive pseudonym, but we actually have Hilary Duff to thank for Banksy as a baby name. Banksy is Duff's nickname for her daughter Banks, born in 2018. Banksy debuted on the charts in 2020, when it was used for seven baby girls.

Lexington is rising as a place name used just about evenly for the genders. For Americans, it's got a patriotic ring, given the importance of Lexington, Massachusetts in the Revolutionary War. Lexington, Kentucky, in horse country, is another famous place with the name.

A word name that's appealing when applied to a person boogying or doing ballet; a different story in the context of Santa's reindeer.

Alternative to Princess or Queenie.

Sadler is another new entrant in the trendy occupational surname category, one particularly prime for a horse lover.

Baby is rarely seen as a given name — or even nickname — these days, although it did rank in the Top 1000 from 1989 to 2003. These instances can be accounted for in two ways. Firstly, infants whose birth certificates are not filled out on time are given generic placeholders for registration, such as Infant, Unknown, or Baby. But more influential during this decade was the 1987 movie Dirty Dancing, starring Jennifer Grey as Frances "Baby" Houseman. It's the origin of the famed line, "Nobody puts Baby in a corner."

Soul fans may wish to use this unusual name as a reference to singer Jimmy Ruffin and his younger brother David, one of the lead members of The Temptations.

This Latin-sounding place-name, created by C. S. Lewis for his Chronicles, will undoubtedly be adopted by a few admiring parents.

Like Silver, Golden is a shimmering metallic color name, almost too dazzling for an ordinary girl.

Long synonymous with the American outlaw Harry Longabaugh, aka The Sundance Kid, who got his nickname from the town of Sundance, Wyoming, where he was incarcerated as a teenager. The place name Sundance was taken from the sun dance ceremony practiced by local Native American tribes.

What a novel choice for those choosing to honor their Celtic heritage or love of horses (or both). One can imagine a little Ahearne running wildly through lush green fields.

Panda, welcome to the baby name menagerie! Panda is an adorable animal name (after an adorable animal) that is sure to be both very rare and very cute. In Skins there was a character called Panda, which was short for Pandora. The name Panda comes from the Nepali word ponya meaning "bamboo eater".

As classic as it comes in Italy — Filippo was once common during the Renaissance, and today remains in the Top 25.

Cowboyish occupational name that's one of the hottest choices below the Top 1000, increasing in rank more than 5000 places since the year 2000. Roper may not be a unique choice much longer.