Boy #6

Reversed vowels make it seem less fierce.

Bjorn is one of the most recognizable Scandinavian names, thanks in large part to tennis great Björn Borg, winner of five consecutive Wimbledon singles titles and six French opens and something of a rock star figure.

Boone is one of the advancing herd of lean and lanky cowboy names with a laid-back, backwoods, Western feel—and surprising French roots. It's inevitably linked with legendary frontiersman Daniel, and also with the positive connotations of the word boon. It debuted in the US Top 1000 in 2015.

Has a bit of a hayseed image, and that oy sound is tough to work with.

Bram has an unusual measure of character and charm for a one-syllable name; it started as a hipper-than-Abe diminutive of the biblical Abraham, but is also an independent Irish and Dutch name, made famous by Irish-born Dracula creator Bram (nee Abraham) Stoker. Bram is currently Number 16 in the Netherlands; Bram Howard was a character on The West Wing.

Cedar is, like Ash, Oak, Pine and Ebony, one of the new tree/wood names that parents are starting to consider; this one is particularly aromatic.

Lovers of the languid South Carolina city might be attracted to this rich-sounding name. Could make an interesting update on Charles -- and can certainly work for a girl too. Actor Joey Lawrence used it for his daughter.

Even though in the past Clyde may have been identified as half of the infamous outlaw duo with partner Bonnie Parker—especially after the 1967 movie in which he was played by Warren Beatty—Clyde has always had an element of jazzy cool that could overcome all the rest.

A British-accented Greek name with an intellectual image that has been off the U.S. charts since 1966, but was a Top 300 name at the turn of the last century. We have the feeling Cyril's ready for a comeback.

Cyrus is one of those surprising names that have always ranked among the Top 1000 boy names in the US. On an upward trend since the mid-90s, Cyrus now sits in that comfortable place between too popular and too unusual.

Enough parents have found naturalist Charles Darwin, the father of the theory of evolution, a worthy hero to keep Darwin relatively consistently in the Top 1000 (it dropped off in 2021 but is back in 2022)—though some might just like its trendy two-syllable sound. It has a lovely meaning too—"dear friend."

Dash is a nickname that can stand on its own and sounds, well, dashing. Connected these days with Kardashian enterprises.

A Desi variation that moves the name away from Lucy -- though it's just as dizzy. TV star Jaime Pressly used it for her son.

A relatively common surname, Dixon would be an inventive way to honor an ancestral Richard or Dick, the X form a lot livelier than the Dickson spelling, just as Dix is a more modern short form than Dick; it would be right at home alongside Dax and Jax.

Drexel is an occupational surname but the original meaning of what a person who "turned" for a living actually did is unclear: It may mean turning the soil or making hay or spinning cloth or creating decorative objects. With the rise of the similar-sounding Dexter, Drexel might catch on.

Dune is a name of several layers. It's a modern nature name, like Ocean, Bay and Reef, although rarer, conjuring up images of breezy sand dunes on summer beach days.

This rhythmic last-name-first-name projects the creativity and inventiveness of Thomas Edison. It's an English surname deriving from either Adam or Eda, a medieval diminutive of Edith.

Strong, straight, and leafy, one of the new tree names used mostly as middles.

Inventive name for the child of a writer.