A to Z - Boys

Magnus is a Latin name, literally meaning "greatest," that has a Scandinavian feel. It dates back to Charlemagne being called Carolus Magnus, or Charles the Great. Norwegian king Magnus I, named after Charlemagne, introduced it to his culture, and thus Magnus was the name of six early kings of Norway and four of Sweden. It is still a highly popular name in Denmark and Norway.

Mateo vaulted into the boys' Top 10 in 2023, ranking all the way up at Number 6. Counting Mateo and Teo along with Anglo equivalents Theodore and Theo make this by far the Number 1 boys' name in the US.

Very popular in France and Belgium, this name -- pronounced mat-tees, like the surname of the painter Matisse -- might make an appealing new way to say Matthew here.

Cute Finnish version of Michael.

Mordecai, although it has a noble heritage, has never caught on in this country, because of its rather weighty image.

The surname of the influential early Scottish inventor of logarithms could make an inspiring middle name choice for a mathematically inclined family.

Would fit right in with the currently popular in/an/en/on-ending boys' names.

The association with the infamous Nero, the fiddling Roman emperor, would be unavoidable. But there was also the detective Nero Wolfe, hero of many mystery stories.

Nico is one of the great nickname names, full of charm, energy and effortless cool -- a neo Nick.

Related to the Russian name Nikolai, this is a fresh and worldly form of a popular favorite.

Noel is British, fey, and sophisticated, connoting wit and creativity, much like namesake Noel Coward. Noel has also been a character on Felicity and Pretty Little Liars. Thanks to their association with Christmas, Noel and Noelle make ideal names for December babies and names for Christmas babies.

The Shakespearean character Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream is King of the Fairies, but the name, with its strong 'O' beginning, projects a far more virile image than that.

Unlike Pearl and Ruby and more like Jasper, this gem name works well as a boys name. With its strong final X, it feels similar to Alex, Phoenix, Jax, and Rex, while the shiny black quality of the stone feels reminiscent of Orion. Chosen by musician Iggy Azalea for her son in 2020, it has accelerated up the charts and now sits just outside the Top 300.

Oskar is to Oscar as Jakob is to Jacob: more distinctive and continental.

Clad in armor. But while this name may have been forbiddingly antiquated not that long ago, the connection to the trendy nickname Os or Oz makes it a real possibility.

Calm, straightforward, patrician sounding: Pace is one new-style name that's well-grounded.

Paxton stands out from a lot of other two-syllable surname names for two reasons: the dynamic letter X in the middle, and its admirable peace association, providing the great nickname Pax.

The field of nature names is constantly expanding to include all species of flowers and trees and animals and birds and even fish. In addition to its appeal for anglers, Pike recalls Zebulon Pike, the explorer who discovered and gave his name to Pike's Peak.

Castor's twin in the constellation Gemini. That final x makes this name modern and cool.

Prescott is one of several distinguished, upper-crusty surnames beginning with P.