How I Met Your Mother Names

Lily is the most popular of the popular delicate century-old flower names now making a return, thanks to its many irresistible attributes: a cool elegance and a lovely sound, a symbol of purity and innocence, and a role in Christian imagery.

The eternal fiancee of Superman turned sweet gray-haired lady who's always available to babysit her grandkids turned....hot new baby name?

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.

Though ancient, Marcus now sounds more current than Mark, in tune with today's trend towards us-ending Latinate names.

Marshall is an occupational surname, not having to do with anything military or martial, but stemming from the Norman French for someone caring for horses. It's been used as a first name since the nineteenth century and has been on the Social Security list since it started to publish its data in 1880.

Martin is one of those names like Arthur and Vincent and George that is in the process of throwing off its balding middle-aged image to start sounding possible again, used in full without the dated Marty nickname.

Marvin has been neglected for so long that it's hard to believe that it has windswept Welsh roots. It also has some strong namesakes going for it -- singer Marvin Gaye, composer Marvin Hamlisch and boxer Marvin Hagler. It's the real name of both Neil Simon and Meatloaf. And let's not forget mention Marvin Gardens on Monopoly.

Pugnacious and spunky like the young Mickey Rooney and the original Mickey Mouse, but virtually never given to babies today.

Morris is as quiet and comfortable as a Morris chair, and has the same vintage feel. Once a Top 100 name in the early 1900s, Morris fell completely off the roster in 1995, probably due to lingering fallout from his identification with Morris the cat's ("the world's most finicky cat") 9 Lives cat food commercials.

Once a poetic Celtic name, that of the angel who governs the month of June, Muriel became the mom or grandma on TV sitcoms. She does have literary cred via Edinburgh-born author Muriel Spark, author of The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and also appears as a character in Anne of Green Gables. Muriel was a Top 200 name from 1912 to 1933.

Olaf, though sainted and regal in Norway, is slightly oafish here. It is one of those names that has become completely familiar in the U.S. without ever becoming assimilated. Now that he's a comical character in Disney's Frozen, he might get some more attention.

Like Peggy and Patsy, the kind of zesty moniker young Judy Garland would sport in her early let's-put-on-a-show flicks. It fell out of favor (and the Top 1000) for a while, but has recently rebounded by reentering the charts in 2013. Expect it to continue gaining traction as a result of surprise hit Penelope.

Sixties-style short form that sounds cool again -- though the unscrupulous Pete on "Mad Men" is not a character to emulate.

Intriguing import.

Chic in the fifties, now kept in the public eye mainly by actress Zellweger. Variations include Rene, Renae, and Renny.

One of the glamour girl names of the Rita Hayworth 1940s, Rita was once a Top 50 name and stayed on the SSA list until 2002.

After a 60 year slide down the popularity ladder, Robin made a turnaround in 2020 and began climbing back into favor for baby girls. One reason may be its new status as one of the most evenly-divided gender neutral names.

Ruth, with its air of calm and compassion, was the third most popular name in the 1890s, remaining in the Top 10 through the 1920s. It's still in use today as some parents tiring of Rachel and Rebecca are giving Ruth a second thought. Some see such Old Testament girls’ names as Ruth and Esther rising on the heels of boy equivalents Abel and Moses.

Sadie started as a nickname for Sarah, but their images couldn't be more disparate. Where Sarah is serious and sweet, Sadie is full of sass and fun.