Occupational Names

  1. Webster
    • Origin:

      English occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "weaver"
    • Description:

      Webster is one of several W-starting surname names back on the drawing board, now that it has recovered from its childlike eighties sitcom identity.
  2. Brogan
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "small shoe"
    • Description:

      Brogan is a cheerful Irish surname that would fit right in with the Logans and Br-starting names now trendy for boys. It's been on the pop list for the past three years, though it's sliding again. Its history includes Saint Brogan (Broccan in Gaelic), who was Saint Patrick's nephew and scribe.
  3. Collier
    • Origin:

      English occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "coal miner"
    • Description:

      This occupational surname could find new life with those wishing to honor someone in their heritage who was connected to the tough-as-nails breed that was the pre-modern coal miner. Coll and Collie are some sweet nickname options to tone down the formality of this name.
  4. Kiefer
    • Origin:

      German
    • Meaning:

      "barrel maker; pine"
    • Description:

      Kiefer is a strong occupational surname associated with "24" star Kiefer Sutherland, but one that could well join the other 'er' surnames currently in favor. Keifer is a German surname transferred to first name use, derived from two old Germanic words, kien and forhe, both of which mean "pine tree."
  5. Cordell
    • Origin:

      English occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "maker or seller of rope or cord"
    • Description:

      This is a name that deserves more attention. Cordell is an occupational name that, through its similarity in sound to Cornell, Denzel, Dashiell, Boswell and Maxwell, feels both on-trend and upmarket.
  6. Teller
    • Origin:

      Occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "to receive and give out money"
    • Description:

      An occupational name, associated with working in a bank or as a vote counter. There's also the more whimsical possibility of it linking to "storyteller".
  7. Jeter
    • Origin:

      French or German surname
    • Description:

      Jeter, which of course is used as a first name only because of Yankee star Derek, rhymes with Peter and may be derived from the French surname Jette, which was often bestowed on foundlings because it means "thrown out," or the German Jetter, an occupational name meaning "weeder." If your husband insists on Jeter, counter with Percival.
  8. Vandal
    • Origin:

      American word or occupational name
    • Description:

      Another bad boy occupational name, joining Bandit, Rogue, and Gunner. The Vandals were a tribe that swept through Europe and North Africa in the sixth century and sacked Rome. Their name is thought to spring from the Germanic word for wandering, but has come to mean senseless destruction. We really don't want to sit in on your parent-teacher conferences.
  9. Brewer
    • Origin:

      English, occupational surname
    • Description:

      Brewer is a surname turned first name that comes from the occupational name for someone who brews beer. Definitely a cool guy name.
  10. Wainwright
    • Origin:

      English occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "wagon maker"
    • Description:

      A surname style name that could make an alternative to Wayne or Wyatt.
  11. Author
    • Origin:

      Word and occupational name
    • Description:

      An occupation name that sounds odd to the modern ear but enjoyed some use a century ago. May make a comeback as a more genteel brother to the new union of boys (and girls) with worker names such as Mason, Carter, and Bailey.
  12. Lander
    • Origin:

      English from German
    • Meaning:

      "territory"
    • Description:

      Lander is a name that straddles two trends. It's an er-ending surname name, ala Cooper and Carter. And it's also, more subtly, a green name, in the manner of Fielder or Reed.
  13. Bandit
    • Origin:

      Word or occupational name
    • Description:

      We hesitate to call Bandit an occupational name, any more than Rogue or Vandal are occupational names, yet its use by one of the bandmembers of My Chemical Romance (for his daughter: we're not even going to go there) undoubtedly owes a debt to occupational cousins from Pilot to Parker. Recommended for use by rock stars with full-time nannies only.
  14. Rider
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "horseman"
    • Description:

      Rider is a rock-and-roll baby name, in every sense of the term, though usually spelled Ryder, as in the sons of Kate Hudson and John Leguizamo.
  15. Cutter
    • Origin:

      English occupational surname
    • Meaning:

      "tailor, barber"
    • Description:

      Cutter was an old-fashioned term for a tailor or barber that was eventually adopted as a surname. That gives it more legitimacy than many of the other aggressive boy names — Striker, Shooter, Breaker, et al. — but Cutter remains equally threatening.
  16. Potter
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "maker of drinking and storage vessels"
    • Description:

      Could join such up-and-comers as Miller and Gardener.
  17. Brenner
    • Origin:

      German
    • Meaning:

      "to burn"
    • Description:

      Brenner is an occupational surname for both a charcoal burner and a distiller of spirits. One of the least used of occupational surnames, it has that 'er' ending that definitely adds to its stylishness; a possible successor to Brendan.
  18. Shooter
    • Origin:

      Word name
    • Description:

      Previously known only as the nickname of Waylon "Shooter" Jennings, Jr., who's married to Sopranos star Drea DeMatteo, the violent Shooter recently became a proper name when painter Julian Schnabel used it for his newborn son with gallerist May Andersen: The little boy is named Shooter Sandhed Julian Schnabel, Jr.
  19. Hopper
    • Origin:

      English or Dutch
    • Meaning:

      "leaper, dancer; hop grower"
    • Description:

      Sean and Robin Wright Penn chose this name for their son to honor their friend Dennis Hopper; others might associate it with the painter Edward. Couldn't be more spirited.
  20. Sherman
    • Origin:

      English occupational name
    • Meaning:

      "shearer of woolen cloth"
    • Description:

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