Unusual, yet Usable Baby Names

A simple, importable Japanese name that is used for both males and females and carries a multitude of meanings depending on which character is used to denote it. While most westerners pronounced it rye-oh, its real pronunciation is closer to ree-uh. A similar male name, Ryu, means "dragon."

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. A unisex choice that is growing in popularity for both genders—but given to girls about four times more often than to boys—it was picked by skater Tai Babilonia for her son and Kerri Walsh for her daughter Scout Margery.

Sidda is a name made famous by the heroine of The Ya-Ya Sisterhood; it probably started life as a nickname.

Could there be a more poetic name than Sonnet? Actor Forest Whitaker was inspired to choose it for his daughter.

Thisbe, the name of a beautiful but tragic lover in mythology, is lively and cute -- in a slightly thistly, prickly way. Ovid retold the story of Thisbe and Pyramus, young lovers in ancient Babylon kept apart by family rivalry, which was the inspiration for Romeo and Juliet. A modern bearer of the name is writer Thisbe Nissen.

In Sarah Dessen's novel Along for the Ride, the baby daughter is named Thisby, nn Isby.

Though to most Americans Viggo is a one-person name attached to intense actor Mortensen, it is actually an old Norse name dating back to the Vikings, and is currently the 32nd most popular appellation in Sweden. Viggo Mortensen is a Jr., sharing his name with his Danish father.

Rugged, outdoorsy, and full of energy, Wilder entered the US Top 1000 back in 2015. Part bad boy, part Western, part preppy, and part nature-loving, Wilder is given to nearly 800 babies each year.

Winslow's most famous reference may be male painter Winslow Homer, but as a name it's beginning to be on the rise for girls. Adorable nickname Winnie may be the reason. Other unusual painterly possibilities for either sex: O'Keeffe, Hopper, and just plain Painter.

A New Testament tax collector was called Zaccheus, the freshest spin on this biblical favorite.