Rare, Unique, and Unusual Boy Names

Two prominent literary namesakes make Gregor a somewhat risky choice. On the highbrow side, there's Gregor Samsa, the Kafka character who woke up one day to find himself turned into a cockroach. And then there's Gregor Clegane, one of the most feared and purely evil characters in the world of Game of Thrones.

Colm is a popular Irish name for boys that could immigrate, especially with its peaceful meaning. Colm Toibin is a contemporary Irish novelist and critic, author of The Master and Brooklyn; Colm Meaney is an Irish actor. Pronunciation is two syllables instead of one, like Colin with an 'm' at the end. Colm is related to Columba, Colom, Colum, Callum, and Malcolm.

Everybody knows Huckleberry Finn, the Mark Twain character named, Twain said, for the 19th century slang term for "humble." A few modern parents have put it on a birth certificate, including "Man Vs. Wild" star Bear Grylls, who, like many parents, will call the boy the much more manageable Huck. It was also the name of a child on TV's West Wing,

An upscale surname with a nice modern design connection to the creators of the Eames chair and other midcentury furniture classics, Charles and Ray Eames.

Rooney is one of many bouncy Irish surnames that could make an agreeable first, once tied to Mickey Rooney (who was actually born Joseph Yule) in his young and spunky Andy Hardy period.

Brisk, preppy York is an underused classic with the potential to really shine in the 21st century. It's most familiar as a place name — York is a city in England — and surname. New York City and State were named after the Duke of York.

This shimmery Age of Aquarius unisex flower child name is making a comeback, along with metal and gem names like Steel, Jade, and Ruby.

Dramatic and worldly, Cosimo was chosen by singer Beck and his wife, Marissa Ribisi, for their son. Now that Cosima has emerged as a starbaby favorite, twin brother Cosimo could join her.

Lengthy, romantic Alessandro gives us the friendly and casual nickname Sandro, which works just as well as an independent name. It’s a popular international name, having ranked in Italy, France, Portugal, and Switzerland in recent years.

Raoul, with its unique three-vowel middle, rolls off the tongue in an appealing way. Raoul is one of the French names that sounds infinitely more romantic and attractive than the somewhat harsh English version Ralph.

Mime Marcel Marceau actually had two versions of the same name. Marcel, Marceau, Marcella, Marcus, Mark -- all are variation of the Roman mythological name Mars, the god of war.

This Italian version of the ancient Roman Livius, with an unenviable meaning, is popular in France and make a fresh spin on Oliver or Levi. In the US, this is a very rare name -- it was given to no baby boys in 2022 -- with big potential.

A family of lawyers might be interested in this surname as a tribute to famed defense attorney Clarence Darrow.

Musical term with a lot of energy.

The name of an adorably small, big-eared fox native to Africa would make an inspired choice for a little boy -- though confusion with Hunger Games name Finnick is all but certain. Given the rise of animal names and the fashionability of names that start with F among the leading baby name trends, Fennec may find more favor.

Franz is the German equivalent to Francis, and you'll be hard-pressed to find a Franz outside of countries with Germanic origins. In America the name is often associated with celebrated author Franz Kafka, who was born in Prague.

Subtract the last two letters of Arnold, and you're left with a much more modern-sounding name. Arno is also the name of the main river in Florence, upon which sits the famed Ponte Vecchio. The Italian river name means "flowing water".

Once too tightly tied to the aging musical clan featuring Donny and Marie, Osmond may now be able to escape that association and join the cooler group of Os and Oz names, which include Osgood, Ozias, and even Oswald.

Tao is the Chinese word for the underlying harmony of the universe, combining both yin and yang. Extreme kayaker Tao Berman made this one of the spiritual names prime for adoption. Tao rhymes with cow.

A welcoming name that seems to say "hello". Celio can be thought of as a much rarer male variation of Celia. With heavenly names in the ascendant, we may be hearing lots more of Celio.