Crazy Nicknames for Boys

A bouncy midcentury TV nickname name.

Many emotional, virtuous word names are coming back into style, but Happy feels unlikely to be revived. This could be because it doesn't have a solid history of being popularly used (in comparison to Joy) and because it's such a familiarly used word in day to day life (unlike Valor).

In addition to being the term for a job performing music, Gig has been used as a name, as in onetime actor Gig Young--who was born Byron but took his stage name from a character he played.

Macho-er than thou.

Has too many slangy connotations to be considered.

Friendly but flimsy.

If you like the idea of King and Prince but find them too sophisticated, this might be the name for you.

Briefly used as a male name in the early 20th century. Doll is a surname with a variety of origins and meanings, some more desirable than others.

Actor Rhames's imaginative shortening of the prosaic Irving, giving it new life and energy.

A bit too cunning.

Rhythmic and sensual -- maybe too sensual, in terms of playground teasing. Sax Rohmer was the nom de plume of the prolific English novelist who created Dr.Fu Manchu.

In the well-known Dutch children's book series Jip and Janneke, Jip is a boy, but this cutesy nickname name can traditionally be used on both girls and boys.

Once you get past thinking of it as a red-painted building where they keep cows and hay, has a nice plainspoken country-like feel and may make a cooler diminutive than the still-purple Barney.

Along with Dobbin, Dob was medieval nickname for Robert.

Japhy Ryder was a hero of Jack Kerouac's Dharma Bums. Compared with Moses and Noah, Japhy sounds downright adorable and eminently baby-worthy.

What child wouldn't like a name that was a synonym for cool?

A common Irish surname that's seldom heard as a first name, but has an appealing meaning.

NBA player Damian "Dame" Lillard is the influencer behind this unusual nickname. Dame made the charts for the first time in 2021, following Lillard's gold medal in the 2020 Summer Olympics.

The Biblical Abijah might be temporarily lost to time, but this antiquated short form could move with it into the modern era.