Cobwebs and Bonfires

A fresher, less preppy alternative to Thatcher — one without Prime Minister associations.

Henry is back. The classic Henry climbed back onto the Top 10 in the US in 2021 for the first time in over a century, and now stands at Number 8.

Hodge is a medieval English nickname for Roger, which was brought to England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Roger isn't ready for a comeback yet, but we'd love to see the resurgence of Hodge, which never was a common choice in the US.

Holly ranks just in British Top 50, but it's been out of favor here since the 1970s Era of Nickname Names. Still, the name may be on her way back as a rejuvenated nature pick.

Hurley is a possibility as a unisex surname-name ending with the "lee" sound. It is perhaps most associated with British actress Elizabeth Hurley, and is much rarer than Harley, because the "ur" sound is currently out of fashion (and the word "hurl" may put some off).

Though some might find it a bit heavy-booted, Ivan is one of the few Russian boys' names to become fully accepted into the American naming pool.

Jackie Kennedy gave this name a lot of style, but it doesn't seem destined for a comeback the way brother name Jack has. Jackie and Jacqueline both peaked in 1961.

Jacqueline originated as a feminine form of Jacques, the French variation of James, and therefore Jacob. Jacob was ultimately derived from the Hebrew name Ya’aqov, and gets its meaning, "supplanter" from the story of Jacob supplanting his brother Esau as the first-born son in the Bible. Jacqueline was first used in France in the Middle Ages.

Part Jason, part Jayce, this name has been among the Top 500 names for boys near-consistently since the late 1960s. While it's a reasonable spelling especially if you're naming your son after someone named Jay or another name that starts with the letter J, it's one of those names that will eternally need to be spelled out for people. But then again, so are classics like Elisabeth and Sara and Jon.

Relic of a past period of French favorites, out to pasture with Claudette and Paulette.

Probably due to its nursery rhyme association, Jill has the perpetual air of a rosy-cheeked tot -- even though it is one of the oldest names on the roster, a medieval variation on the Roman Julia. The pairing of Jack and Jill to connote a generic boy and girl goes back at least to the fifteenth century. But can knowing Jill's history keep it from sounding like a cute mid-twentieth century invention? There may be some possibility of Jill making it back up the hill.

In the Old Testament, Joel was one of King David's 'mighty men' and the name was taken up by the Puritans of the sixteenth century. In the mid 1960s, Joel entered the Top 100, and stayed there for about twenty years, as parents tried to jazz up and formalize old standby Joe by reviving this biblical name.

Johanna is the version of this name used in Holland, Germany, and Scandinavia. The extra h makes Johanna a slightly more dignified version of Joanna.

An Irish county name almost exclusively used for girls now. Kerrigan would be a more modern and masculine choice.

Far more friendly and open than similar one-syllable names like Kent, Kurt, and Karl, it's been associated for more than half a century with actor Kirk Douglas, whose birth name was Issur Danielovitch Demsky.

Lovely, authentic name -- but any Kirsten will be condemned to a lifetime of hearing "Did you say Kristen?" They're both genuine Scandinavian names but too interchangeable.

A name that defines itself, a bit more curt in the harder K version.

Nickname of yesteryear now saddled with all manner of unattractive associations. Any Leonard of today would be called Leo, or maybe Leon or Leonard (or much more fashionably, Leonardo).

Lester is one of the British surname names that were popular in the US in the early decades of the twentieth century: it was in the Top 100 through 1931, reaching a high of Number 52 in 1906. But dropping of the list in the late 1990s, along with Hester and Sylvester, we don't see much hope for a return visit.