Some of the coolest baby girl names are not girls' names at all but boys' names -- many of which have officially become <a href="https://nameberry.com/unisex-names">unisex names</a>. We're seeing more and more formerly 100% boy names being used for girls, from nicknames like Sam and Charlie (now 50-50 by gender!), to occupational or surnames such as Sawyer or McKinley to formerly masculine names such as Quincy and Jude that have become truly unisex. 

Celebrity parents Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds broke the gender barrier in a new way when they named their daughter James. Many parents followed suit, sometimes using James as a middle name. 

The trendy Arlo is one recently boy name that's moving to the girls' side. Australian actress Asher Keddie is proof that Asher might be a good alternative to the dated Ashley. Ezra and Noah are Biblical names that are increasingly being used for girls as well as boys. And in Israel, Daniel is a Top 100 name...for girls.

Some people think it's wrong to use boy names for girls unless the practice also works in the opposite direction. While statistics show that more parents are giving their sons unisex names, we are not seeing boys given decidedly feminine names in the same way that baby girls are being given formerly masculine names.

In case anyone thinks this is just another wacky name theory, statistics bear out that girls are being given all the names on this list in significant numbers. There were more than 50 baby girls in the US last year named Max and Maxwell, for instance, as well as Maverick, Landon, Chase, Auden, and Atlas.

Here, some boy names that can work for girls.

Boy Names for Girls

Out-of-date for a boy, innovative for a girl. 

Barry

Jean is primed to rise again – particularly in the middle slot. So could Gene follow suit? 

This spelling is still more commonly a male name, short for Eugene or given as a standalone, but it works as a nickname for Eugenie, Genevieve, Imogene, Georgina and several other stylish female names.

Gene

Andre is traditionally a male name, but it is not completely unknown for girls. Think of it as an abbreviation of Andrea and it makes more sense.

Andre

Names ending in son are by definition male, but that hasn't stopped Madison and Allison from being widely used for girls. Greyson is one of the latest choices to join the migration across gender lines.

Greyson

This simple unisex Vietnamese name has multiple possible meanings, including "hero", "petal", "brave", "bright", depending on the characters used to write it.

Harris is a last-name name related, of course, to Harry and Harrison, in turn relatives of Henry. It's usually a male name, but Fox news anchor Harris Faulkner brought it to the female column. She may be unique: Fewer than five baby girls were named Harris in the US in 2023.

Harris

boy names for girls

Boy names used for baby girls including unisex and gender neutral names for baby girls such as Charlie, Quincy, and Sawyer, with origins, meanings, and popularity, controversial names, celebrity names, name theories, occupational names, nickname names (Page 8)

Boy Names for Girls

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