gender neutral names I personally like

An unusual name related to the willow family.

The energetic Russian nickname name Sasha is being used increasingly on its own, though since the prominence of the First Daughter, more than 90% of the American babies named Sasha are girls. Sacha Baron Cohen bears one of the alternate spellings.

Sasha, largely male in Russia--and also spelled Sascha and Sacha--is an energetic name that has really taken off for girls here, chosen by Jerry Seinfeld (using the alternate Sascha spelling) and other celebs. The Barack Obamas use it as the nickname for their younger daughter, whose proper name is Natasha. But in line with a trend toward softer-sounding boys' names like Asher and Joshua and thanks to Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen, Sasha also still has life as a boys' name too--it's popular in France for boys and girls almost equally.

This worthy name, imported by the early Dutch colonists, has been all but overpowered by the phonetic spellings -- Skyler for boys and Skylar for girls. With the surnames-as-first-names trend, however, and the popularity of the Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton, which features the Schuyler sisters, perhaps Schuyler might receive some more interest in the coming years.

Originally a Dutch surname, imported by the early Dutch colonists, has been all but overpowered by the phonetic spellings in the US -- Skyler for boys and Skylar for girls. With the surnames-as-first-names trend, however, and the popularity of the Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical Hamilton, which features the Schuyler sisters, perhaps Schuyler might receive some more interest in the coming years.

Chosen for their daughter by Bruce and Demi (inspired by the To Kill a Mockingbirdcharacter), and for her son by Tai Babilonia, an interesting choice for either sex, with overtones of a "good scout" and the upstanding qualities of a Boy/Girl Scout.

Scout, a character nickname from To Kill a Mockingbird (her real name was Jean Louise), became a real-life possibility when Bruce Willis and Demi Moore used it for their now-grown middle daughter, followed by Tom Berenger a few years later. It was picked by skater Tai Babilonia for her son and Kerri Walsh for her daughter Scout Margery. A unisex choice that is growing in popularity for both genders—but given to girls about four times more often than to boys.

Sean, after a long reign as one of the top Irish boys' names in the US, has now slipped as parents look to fresher Irish choices such as Liam and Aidan. In Ireland, Sean is still highly popular, but variation Senan, an Anglicized spelling of diminutive Seanan, is also stylish in Ireland. While Sean is the Irish form of John, Seanan and Senan may be thought of either as Sean diminutives or relatives of the Latin word "senator".

Sean may be off its peak for boys, but there were still 1300 baby boys named Sean in the US in the most recent year counted, versus only five baby girls. In fact, there were fewer than 30 baby girls given the spellings Sean, Shaun, and Shawn combined. So while this name has been long used for girls, it remains in only occasional use as a feminine name and is not truly unisex in the way that names such as Rory and River are.

The long-neglected name of Adam and Eve's third son after Cain and Abel, Seth is appreciated for its gentle, understated presence -- and strong middle-name potential. It reached a high of Number 63 in the year 2000.

Although very rarely used for girls, its soft, gentle sound makes it a perfect candidate for crossing over to the female camp.

This number name first came to public attention when Erykah Badu and Andre 3000 chose if for their son, Seven Sirius Benjamin, born in 1997. Over a decade later, David and Victoria Beckham used it as their daughter's middle name, and now in these days of unisex word names, it's rising for both sexes. It's certainly one of the most name-like numbers: after all, it's only a letter away from Steven.

Seinfeld's George threatened to name his future child Seven, and then singer Erykah Badu actually did it.

The name of the longest river in the British Isles rose to the US Top 25 for girls in the 1970s and the Top 100 for boys, but has fallen off the Top 1000 for both genders. At the latest count, the name Shannon was given to about 200 babies in the US, about a third of those boys. As a favorite Irish name, Shannon has now been supplanted by newcomers such as Saoirse and Seanan.

Irish place-name -- it's a river, a town, and an airport -- once popular but now supplanted by such newer immigrants as Saoirse and Seanan.