dystopian future names

Abbie is a gently old-fashioned nickname name that owes its rising popularity to Top 10 Abigail. Abby may be the more usual spelling today.

Sympathetic new twist on a Puritan virtue name.

Amiel is a biblical name with lots of connections to those with a creative spirit, including director Jon Amiel, French pop singer Thierry Amiel, and medieval troubadour Gaubert Amiel. Ami (which means friend in French) is an obvious (and beautiful) nickname option.

Atlas is one of those names that was previously thought too powerful for a baby boy, who would have to be strong enough to carry the world on his shoulders. Now Atlas has joined the pantheon of Greek and Roman god and goddess names in the realm of possibility, along with Mars, Zeus and Apollo.

Birdie was until recently a middle-aged Ladies' Club member wearing a bird-decorated hat --but now it's just the kind of vintage nickname (think Hattie, Josie, Mamie, Millie) that's coming back into style in a big way. Actress Busy Philipps named her baby Birdie (inspired by First Lady Lady Bird Johnson), as did soap star Maura West.

The many variations of Brynn are far more popular for girls than boys in the US, but if you’d like to use it on a son, Brin is the most masculine of all the spelling options.

Callen is a unisex Gaelic name growing in popularity here. Its newfound trendiness is possibly related to the Chris O'Donnell character on "NCIS: Los Angeles", known only as G. Callen. Jazz musician Cal Tjader's full name is Callen.

Clover is a charming, perky choice if you want to move beyond hothouse blooms like Rose and Lily, and it's recently become a new celeb favorite, chosen by both Neal McDonough and Natasha Gregson Wagner, who used it to honor her mother, Natalie Wood, one of whose most iconic films was Inside Daisy Clover.

Cora is a lovely, old-fashioned girls' that has been recently rejuvenated by its contemporary-feeling simplicity. In fact, Cora seemed headed straight for the top of the popularity list when the coronavirus pandemic somewhat weakened its appeal.

Cosima, the kind of elegant and unusual name the British upper classes love to use for their daughters, is given to a handful of baby girls in the US after being chosen by two high-profile celebs in the same month; cool couple Sofia Coppola and Thomas Mars as well as supermodel Claudia Schiffer. It was used earlier by celebrity chef Nigella Lawson, while the male form, Cosimo, was given to the son of Marissa Ribisi and Beck.

Cheerful and distinctive.

Dora is poised for a comeback, right behind Laura, Nora, Cora, and Flora. First-time parents who haven't watched cartoons in a couple of decades should be aware of the Dora the Explorer connection, which has its pluses and minuses.