safe boy names and guilty pleasures

Griffin is one of the newer and most appealing of the two-syllable Celtic surnames. In English, griffin is the name of a mythological creature, half eagle, half lion. It re-entered the list in 1983 after an absence of 75+ years.

A relatively rare English place and surname, Hallam could make a distinctive but usable boy's name. Hallam was the surname of the beloved Cambridge friend whose death Alfred, Lord Tennyson, mourns in his famous poem In Memoriam. A.H.H. Tennyson's eldest son, whom he named Hallam, became a Governor-General of Australia.

An appealing Hawaiian name which belongs to a town, river and bay on Kauaʻi island in Hawaii. The two possible meanings of the name, "crescent bay" or "garland (lei) valley" both describe the beauty of the place.

Hardy is a spirited and durable un-Germanic German surname that is starting to be used in this country.

Hart could be the hero of a romantic novel, but on the other hand, it's short, straightforward, and strong sounding. The most famous bearer of the name was tragic poet Hart (born Harold) Crane, but it also has musical cred via Lorenz Hart, of the classic Rodgers & Hart songwriting duo and a literary tie to playwright Moss Hart.

In Cool Names, we cite this as an "Artist Name," for twentieth-century abstract painter Grace Hartigan, though for you it may just be an upbeat Irish surname.

A viable choice that may be growing on your family tree. Hartman Turnbow was a part of Mississippi's "First Fourteen", the first group of African Americans who attempted to register to vote in the state.

Haskell has two separate forms of origin, the first being from the Ancient Norse given name Ásketill. The Normans converted Ásketill to Aschetil, then the English transformed Aschetil into Haskell, which was originally only used as a surname. Haskell is also considered a variant of Haskel, a Yiddish given name derived from Ezekiel.

Like Harbor, one of the new generation of word names with appealing meanings, though (female) memoirist Haven Kimmel has tipped it decidedly toward the girls' side.

Howard, once hugely popular -- in the Top 50 from the 1870s to early 1950s, hitting Number 24 in 1920 -- has been stuck in Dad-Grandad limbo for decades, but is showing some signs of stirring back to life. Along with such formerly-fusty names as George and Harold, Howard may soon feel baby-appropriate, perhaps with the short form Ward.

A name that crosses cultures, Idris was virtually unknown before the emergence of the charismatic Idris Elba, first on The Wire and then depicting Nelson Mandela in the acclaimed film.

This name of a California desert town, used by Deborah Falconer and Robert Downey, Jr. for their son, makes a much livelier and more individual – not to mention more masculine – improvisation on the themes of India and Indiana.

This one-time trendy form of Jeremiah hovered just outside the Top 25 throughout the 1970s and 80s.

Jerome has a bespectacled, serious, studious image, just like its namesake saint, who was a brilliant scholar. St. Jerome is the patron saint of students, librarians, and archaeologists.

Journey is one of the hot new spiritual names. Although Journey was given in 2015 to over 1100 baby girls and fewer than 100 baby boys, it's more visible on the celebrity baby scene as a boys' name: Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green just chose the name for their third son, who also has the unisex middle name River.

Liam is the top boys' name in the US, holding the Number 1 spot for the past seven years and also ranking as one of the most popular boys' names around the western world.

Kate and William shocked the world when they announced that they'd named their third child Louis -- Prince Louis Arthur Charles, to be more precise. But we've been predicting a comeback for this classic name for a long time.

Associated for half a century with Marlon Brando, who inherited the French-inflected name from his father, Marlon has been especially well used by African-Americans, including the Jackson and Wayans families. Though heard much less now than it was in the seventies, this could change as parents look to the names of old Hollywood stars.