ances tree

Extremely amiable, open-sounding surname that's gradually being taken over by the girls.

One of the most appealing of the newly hip occupational names, evoking sweet smells emanating from the oven. Much fresher sounding than than others that have been around for a while, like Cooper, and Carter.

One "bald" name we can get behind, thanks to pioneering African-American author James Baldwin – though the name is now also associated with the Baldwin brothers, particularly Alec.

Historically interesting via the 1917 Balfour Declaration, which supported the creation of a Jewish state in Palestine.

This surname-name comes with some great connotations: Addie Ballou the American feminist, Kurt Ballou — guitarist with the band Converge, or Adin Ballou — abolitionist and pacifist. It has a trendy, whimsical sound that sets it apart from more traditional surnames like Cooper, Hunter, and Archer and puts it more in the camp of the softer international names like Aaru, Bayou, and Finlo.

Traditionally used by the ultrareligious, the French boys' name Baptiste comes from the Greek word meaning "to dip". Baptiste is one of the Top 100 Boy Names in France.

Barbara is back! Among the fastest-rising names of 2023, Barbara came back from oblivion at the very bottom of the Top 1000, gaining nearly 100 places on the popularity list.

In Medieval England, Barbary was a common given name and short form of Barbara. Today it exists as a surname, either derived from Barbara itself, or in French, from the Occitan barbari, meaning "barbarian."

This name's all-male occupational roots help it break the Barbara bonds, but still not the most inspiring surname choice.

Americans may not realize Barclay is the phonetic spelling of the British Berkeley -- though both sound like old-fashioned butler names.

A bit too bad-boy (think bars, beer, Harley) for us, as well as being the name of a grain.

A friendly sounding surname name reminiscent of the increasingly popular Marlow and Harlow. British musician Gary Barlow is a notable namesake.

This is a solid surname choice for people looking for a change from Cooper, Parker and Carson. Australian parents will probably instantly associate this name with famous rock legend Jimmy Barnes, but this has an even older pedigree as a namesake - Barnes Wallis was a UK aviator and inventor, most remembered for designing the Dambuster bomb (a bomb that bounces across water to reach its target) and working on supersonic flight in the 1940s and 50s.

Has some creative credibility via abstract painter Barnett Newman, but we'd prefer his nickname, Barney.

The name Barney is hot among hip Londoners and it has been above the Top 500 in the UK since 2012. You can see why - it's got a friendly happy sound and a lovely meaning and is more easily worn than Barnabas. However, Barney is a more difficult sell in America, due to Barney the Dinosaur and Barney Gumble, the loveable lout from The Simpsons. In the positive column for Barney are jazz clarinetist Barney Bigard and guitarist Barney Kessel. For those who love the name but can't get past the dinosaur, may we suggest the related names Bernard or Barnaby?

Bartholomew is an apostle's name that's been out of favor for centuries but might appeal again to the parent in search of an old but rare choice. The challenge could be to avoid the Simpson-ish nickname. That character, by the way, has the full name of Bartholomew JoJo Simpson, and creator Matt Groening came up with Bart as an--uh oh--anagram for brat. Two old alternate nicknames are Barty and Tolly.

This one may well be an undiscovered choice for many parents - it has a fabulous meaning, a sturdy surname-name appeal that is very on trend right now and several great namesakes including the Bartlett pear and the tome of quotations. Despite that third T, it could also be a favorite of The West Wing fans wanting to evoke fictional president Jed Bartlet.

Think of this as the Hebrew equivalent of Benedict or Benito; best for observant Jews.