Boys names

Though familiar to all via such childhood icons as Hans Brinker, Hans(el) and Gretel, and Hans Christian Andersen, few Americans have chosen this name for their sons because of its intractably Old Country image.

A name from medieval romance with an endearingly clunky sound, à la Sherlock. The most famous modern wearer was twentieth-century psychologist/sexologist Havelock (born Henry) Ellis.

No matter how much you love the novels of Papa H., don't saddle your son with this unwieldy appellation.

These days, more people will relate to Hermes -- pronounced ayr-MEZ -- as an upscale brand name like Chanel and Porsche than as a Greek god. Actress Kelly Rutherford took on the challenge when she bestowed the name on her son. Hermes is the god of travel, writing, athletics, and thievery, among many other things.

This name of an influential Old Testament king of Judah is one that would challenge even the most adventurous biblical name-seeker, but it does have the modernizing short forms Zeke or Kiah.

Homer is a name that has traveled from the ancient Greek scribe of the great classical epics to Bart Simpson's doltish dad, and has also become the surprise hot celebrity pick of such parents as Richard Gere (his father's name), Bill Murray, and Anne Heche. Simpsons creator Matt Groening has both a father and a son named Homer.

Howard, once hugely popular -- in the Top 50 from the 1870s to early 1950s, hitting Number 24 in 1920 -- has been stuck in Dad-Grandad limbo for decades, but is showing some signs of stirring back to life. Along with such formerly-fusty names as George and Harold, Howard may soon feel baby-appropriate, perhaps with the short form Ward.

Hugo, the Latin form of Hugh, has more heft and energy than the original -- and of course we love names that end (or begin, for that matter) with an o. This one is especially appealing because it's backed up by lots of solid history and European style.

Though some might find it a bit heavy-booted, Ivan is one of the few Russian boys' names to become fully accepted into the American naming pool.

Diminutive for all the Slavic names that start with Jar-. If for family or cultural reasons you're seeking such a name, then this is a reasonable short form.

In Paris, it's charming, but in America, it's still Jean, as in blue jean. Or Aunt Jean.

Joseph is one of the most classic names in American nomenclature, popular with parents from many ethnic backgrounds and having dual-religious appeal.

Though Jules hasn't been on the US popularity list in fifty years, it is a current hit in its native France—where it's currently in the Top 10—and we can definitely see it making a comeback here, being far more romantic than, say, Jim.

Manly almost to the point of macho.

Poetic and easier to pronounce (it's keets) than Yeats (which is yates). This one of many poets' names to consider, such as Auden, Eliot, Frost, Byron, Lorca, Marlowe, Blake, Emerson and Tennyson, which was used by Russell Crowe.

Kim is forever feminized, despite memories of the Rudyard Kipling character.

This Scandinavian spin on Christopher gives that enduring classic a lighter, more individual twist, though many may see it as simply a kree8iv spelling.

For centuries this name was associated primarily with the towering figure of Italian Renaissance painter-scientist-inventor Leonardo da Vinci, and was scarcely used outside the Latin culture.

Levi, lighter and more energetic than most biblical names, with its up vowel ending, combines Old Testament gravitas with the casual flair associated with Levi Strauss jeans.