Sporty Names

Russian, Belarusian, Romanian and Bulgarian form of Andrew

Brennan is a winning Irish surname name, more modern than Brian or Brendan, more unusual than Conor and Aidan. The only possible problem with Brennan: people might think you're saying Brendan.

Chris is a long-running nickname used almost equally for boys and girls. While past its prime, Chris stands out as sounding completely appropriate for both sexes, perhaps because of its widespread use as a short form of both the popular Christopher and Christine. Chris manages to retain its crisp appeal even though its fashion moment is over.

Cole -- a short name that embodies a lot of richness and depth -- has long been associated with the great songwriter Cole Porter. It's quite popular in Scotland.

Former teen idol name, now middle-aged. This name has been on a steady decline since the early-1990s.

Variation of Derek.

The energetic Diego is rising rapidly along with a lot of other authentically Spanish baby names that work perfectly well with surnames of any origin.

Frankie is used in almost equal numbers for girls and boys these days. Fun fact: in 2015, it ranked Number 992 for both genders in the US. It is a highly popular boys' name in England and Wales.

Gabriel has become a biblical favorite, an angelic choice that's lighter and less patriarchal than some of his Old Testament brethren. Derived from the Hebrew name Gavri’el, Gabriel is taken from the elements gever, meaning "strong," and ’el, in reference to God.

Ian is Scottish form of John, derived from the Hebrew name Yohanan. It is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic Iain, which is also a viable spelling. Ian was introduced to Americans by Ian Fleming, creator of James Bond.

This one-time trendy form of Jeremiah hovered just outside the Top 25 throughout the 1970s and 80s.

King David's father turned 1980s cowboy, Jesse is now down in popularity but still a Biblical classic, ranking in the US Top 1000 for its entire history. The name is associated with a wide variety of bearers, from outlaw Jesse James to Olympic athlete Jesse Owens to activist Jesse Jackson to current actors Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Jesse Eisenberg. The spelling Jesse is more usual as a boys' name while Jessie is more traditional for girls.

John reigned as the most popular of all boys' Christian names for 400 years, from the time the first Crusaders carried it back to Britain until the 1950s. Then American baby namers finally seemed to tire of this straight-arrow, almost anonymous John Doe of names, replacing it with fancier forms like Jonathan and the imported Sean and Ian.

Strong but gentle, Keith is one of the Scottish surnames that, along with Douglas, Craig and Bruce, were considered the epitome of cool in the 1960s and early 1970s, when it was a Top 40 choice.

Kendall, as used for a girl, was initially propelled by a soap opera character (Sarah Michelle Gellar as Kendall Hart in All My Children) and reality star and Kardashian sister Kendall Jenner.

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

Luke is a cool-yet-strong Biblical name with a relaxed cowboy feel, which has been on the rise since the advent of Luke Skywalker.

Matthew was the third most popular boys' name in America throughout the 1980s and '90s, and is still one of the top boy names starting with M. The New Testament Matthew is the epitome of the fashionable classic—safe and sturdy, yet with a more engaging personality than John or William.

Michael was the Number 1 American boys' name for almost half a century. While Michael has moved out of the Top 10 baby boy names, it's still widely used.

Very much in style, especially after its starring role in Six Feet Under, Nate is one of a new generation of nicknames that go directly on the birth certificate. Other similar names: Sam, Jack, Mack.