A List of Trendy Old Fashioned Names

Fortune is a middle name choice designed to generate good luck and prosperity.

Foster is one commonly heard last name that makes a fine first. The word foster means "to nourish" — as in "fostering hope", or "fostering a relationship". The only problem with Foster might be its association with "foster child."

Fox is one animal name backed by a longish tradition, and then popularized via the lead character Fox Mulder on X Files. Fox is simple, sleek, and a little bit wild, and could make an interesting middle name.

With the advent of Pope Francis, all forms of this ancient and saintly name came up for a fresh look. Along with most other -een and -ine (when pronounced like -een) names for girls, Francine has a dated midcentury Mad Men feel. But its choice for their daughter by modern glamour couple Casey Neistat and Candice Pool, respectively a video star and a jewelry designer, has made Francine chic again.

A classic Italian name still heard in the Italian-American community. Once tainted by the association with the Spanish dictator, it's now more likely to call up actor James Franco.

A doubly Presidential name, via Pierce and Roosevelt, Franklin was given an initial boost via the fame of Benjamin Franklin. It also has a literary tie to the main character of the Wilkie Collins classic The Moonstone.

If Frances and Fran are too serious for you, and Fanny too saucy, you might like Franny, still identified by some with J. D. Salinger's Franny and Zooey stories.

Stylish way to name your son after basketball great Walt -- though Walt is sounding fresh again too.

Just the kind of casual, flippant nickname that upscale Brits are putting on their sons' birth certificates, but few U.S. parents are.

Like Mitzi, the bubbly Fritzi/Fritzie shows signs of rising again,

One of the surname names used more in the last century, à la Milton and Morton.

The iconic Gone With the Wind star Clark's surname was brought into the first-name mix when Weeds' Kevin Nealon picked it for his son. Gable makes a strong and unusual possibility, a rhyming cousin to Abel and Mabel.

Gage was part of the craze for one-syllable surnames, with associations to tasty green gage plums and the mathematical gauge.

Gale for boys is more a storm name than a short form of Abigail. Since Gale has resurfaced as the name of Liam Hemsworth's daring character in The Hunger Games, it has new force for boys.

Gallagher is, like so many of its genre, friendly, open, and optimistic. Some might associate it with the fraternal members of the band Oasis, Noel and Liam Gallagher.

Gandolf and variant Gandulf are legitimate names used in medieval Europe, including by several bishops and dukes. From it comes the name of Castel Gandolfo, the pope's summer residence. However, to most people this will feel like a misspelling of the wizard Gandalf.

One of the jewel names in use a hundred years ago, due for revival along with sisters Ruby and Pearl.

Gatsby is one of the most famous literary surnames, borne by the titular character of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby. The book's Jay Gatsby gussied up his surname from Gatz, whose meaning is given variously as left-handed, cat, God, and person from Gat. As a first name, it's got a lot of energy and that great literary pedigree.

We've heard artists' surnames MONET and MANET used as first names, and so, even though it's a bit of a stretch, the family name of the great post-Impressionist painter Paul Gauguin (go-GAN) could be a possibility.