Names For Characters (Boys)

The least used of the Three Wise Men's names, but a strong option for bold namers to consider.

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

Though you may pray to the god of sleep for your baby to slumber through the night, a drowsy image is not the greatest one to inflict on your little boy.

Following a custom among scholars in Renaissance Germany, Neander is the classical form of the surname Newman. But the bullies at school are sure to call him Neanderthal.

Old Testament name of a king of Israel, related to the harvest.

In the past, Orson has felt like a one-person moniker, tied to film director Orson Welles, who dropped his given name of George in favor of his more distinctive middle. While the Citizen Kane creator seemed to own the name during his lifetime, it's now an interesting possibility for any parent seeking an unusual yet solid name. It's started to appear to the celeb set too -- both Paz Vega and Lauren Ambrose have little Orsons.

Has a legitimate first name history in its native land and an appealing meaning, but pronunciation is far from obvious.

Shiny and sylvan choice.

This gentle Scandinavian name, soft and sensitive, is being discovered in a major way by parents in the US. It's most closely identified with the nineteenth century philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, but there have been modern fictional Sorens as well, in The Matrix Reloaded and the book series Guardians of Ga'Hoole, Charlie and Lola, and Underworld.

Windswept and dramatic, but perhaps asking for trouble. Quite popular in Denmark and Sweden, where it derives from Stromr, which is a fairly common surname. Storm Thorgerson is a famous bearer of the name - he designed iconic album covers for Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, the Cranberries, Anthrax, and Pink Floyd.

Theron is best known these days as the surname of actress Charlize, but it does have a long history as a first name, ranking in the Top 500 in the early part of the 20th century and only dropping out of the Top 1000 in the early 1990s. Theon is a similar name made familiar by the popular series Game of Thrones: Might it and Theron rise in tandem?

The name of the Greek mythological hero famous for slaying the Minotaur is also heard in Chaucer and Shakespeare. While Theseus might have sounded pretentious for an American baby a decade ago, today with so many babies getting ancient mythogical names, it just might work.

Some sources give Thorin as a variation of the thunder god name Thor, equivalent to Thoren, while others says it comes from the verb að þora, meaning "to dare." This is a dwarf's name that first appeared in the thirteenth century mythology compilation Prose Edda, which, along with the Poetic Edda, represents nearly all of pagan Scandinavian mythology. Tolkien later used the name for character Thorin II Oakenshield of The Hobbit.

Rose and Briar are popular, and Hawthorn is cool – so why not the equally prickly Thorn? Add an E to give it a surnamey spin.

Tiernan is the slightly edgier and sharper cousin of Kiernan. This is one Irish surname that is attractive but distinctive; Tierney is another, related, option.