Animal Names for Babies

Cool bearlike option, though Orson might be easier to embrace.

Famous as the long-suffering wife of the philosopher Socrates.

This name of famed philosopher, mathematician and Nobel laureate Bertrand Russell becomes slightly more plausible with the French pronunciation, bare-TRAHN. Another noted bearer is French director and screenwriter Bertrand Tavernier.

This British surname has a somewhat aristocratic air, which ties in to its association with the early American boxing champ "Gentleman Jim" Corbett. CORBIN, which has the same meaning, is slightly more user friendly.

A Navajo nature name with a cool, fresh sound.

One of a handful of Cherokee names meaning "black fox," along with Enoli and Inola.

Sounds like and is often confused with Asia, though it has an air of retro cool via the seminal Steely Dan album. Or, pronounced eye-ah, it can be an alternate spelling of the international favorite Aya.

Feminine spin on Arnold that received a brief flurry of use in the early 1990s.

Iolani feels quintessentially Hawaiian, a stylish origin for baby names these days thanks to Malia, the Hawaiian name of the Obamas' older daughter. The initial I is pronounced with a long e sound, as in Waikiki, and the name Iolani has four syllables.

The name of a small yellow bird that hasn't taken off in the way that some of its avian sisters – like Robin, Wren or Lark – have.

Unisex name in Israel, ideal for a Hanukkah baby.

Mosley, former best known as the surname of author Walter, has been put in play as a first name for girls by football great Peyton Manning, who used the name for his twin daughter, sister of Marshall. Alternate spellings are Moseley and Mosely and the first syllable rhymes with Rose.

Mama's boy.

Orson is being rediscovered and Orsino is every bit as attractive.

If you can name a boy Max instead of Maxwell, or Jax instead of Jackson, then why not Brax instead of Braxton? Over 3300 boys were named the trendy Braxton in the US in one recent year, but snappy short form Brax is a newcomer used for only a handful of babies. Brax may feel more popular than that, though, as many Braxtons are called Brax.

This simple name has an animal meaning, like many Native American names, and can be used for either sex.

Tarvo has two potential origin stories. The first is that it derives from the Old Finnish word tarvas, meaning "wild aurochs," a wild species of cattle that is now extinct. The second possible derivation is from the Estonian tarv, meaning "energy."

Popular name in Spain's Basque country, thanks to cowboyish meaning, virtually unknown elsewhere.

An interesting possibility if you're looking for a highly unusual animal name.