Old Harvard Names

Outmoded comic book choice.

Lionel is one leonine name that hasn't taken off as cousins Leo and Leonardo have, though it did reenter the Top 1000 in 2010 after several years away; it was at its highest point in the 1920s and 1930s.

Lowell is an upstanding and somewhat conservative name that calls to mind the genteel patrician families of nineteenth century New England, such as the one poet Robert Lowell was born into. Two other Lowell-surnamed poets are Amy and James Russell.

Peabody is a quintessentially Waspy surname that your child won't thank you for -- either the pea part or the body part, or the meaning part.

Quincy is a Presidential surname name that actually sounds both cute and strong when used for a girl. For the first time ever, Quincy joined the Top 1000 roster for girls in 2023, given to over 250 baby girls that year.

Thayer is an affable, less-common alternative to Taylor, with a much more indirect connection to its occupational source. Actor Thayer David (born David Thayer: Thayer was his father's first name) was known for his roles in Rocky and Dark Shadows.

Unfortunate identification with an army of rats in the movie of the same name.

Proper Bostonian.