Adventurous parents-to-be who are interested in an unexpected and out of the ordinary baby name have a lot of choices these days, as unusual and surprising baby names are all the rage. Move over Anne and Michael, Adelia and Magnus are here to stay.
Whether you’re seeking a baby name that stands out from the rest of the playground crowd or one that reflects your child’s individuality, we’ve got a variety of uncommon baby names choices to help you in your search. Happy hunting!
Check out our picks for the 100+ best unique baby names.
Unique baby names that start with A
- Anise—meaning spice, this tasty name is the main ingredient in licorice!
- Adelia—If you love Ava and Abigail, this vintage name is more distinctive.
- Auden— in Old English, this name means “old friend”.
- Alma—This soulful name of Latin origin means “nurturing”.
- Abra—Love magic? This name is for you. It’s also the feminine version of Abraham.
- Amara—A multicultural name with various meanings, among them “immortal” and “peaceful”.
- Angelica— Fans of Broadway’s Hamilton will love this name, which means “angel” or “angelic” and is of Italian, Polish, Russian origin.
- Ansel—from the photographer Ansel Adams to actor Ansel Elgort, this creative name is a sure bet.
- Arden—Of English origin meaning “Valley of the Eagle”, we love the unisex appeal of this name.
- Artemis—A fighter and Greek goddess of the hunt, but whos name has a strong unisex feel.
- Asa—A cross-cultural, unisex name which means “healer” and “born in the morning”.
Unique baby names that start with B
- Baldwin—Meaning “brave friend” in German, and perfect for fans of James Baldwin.
- Bronwin—We endorse any name that sounds like it came from Wuthering Heights.
- Bear—Once-unlikely animal name both cuddly and strong, gaining real traction.
- Bishop—Of English origin, meaning “guardian”.
- Blue—Queen Bey may have started a trend with hue-themed names, and we are all for it.
- Booker—Future wordsmith? Or English origin, this name means “scribe”.
Unique baby names that start with C
- Cassia—A feminine take on newly-trendy Cassius and Cassian, with a spicy meaning (from Latin meaning “cinnamon”).
- Colson—Derived from the name Nicholas, this name means “People of Victory”.
- Cora—A pretty name of Greek origin meaning “fair”.
- Cordelia—A water-themed name meaning “daughter of the sea”. Anne of Green Gables fans will like this name as well.
- Calloway—A classic, unisex name that may be a fit for fans of jazz music (the late Cab Calloway was an American jazz singer, dancer, bandleader, and actor).
- Castial—This powerful, Biblical name means “Shield of God” or “My cover is God”.
Unique baby names that start with D
- Darcy—Hello, Jane Austen fans, this one’s for you.
- Dion—A gender-neutral name used most recently in the Netflix show, “Raising Dion”.
- Declan—This Irish, Godly name means “man of prayer” or “full of goodness”.
- Dallas—Just a cool name, especially if you’re from Texas.
- Danika—Of Danish origin, this sweet name means “morning star”.
Unique baby names that start with E
- Ellington—Jazz fans will be reminded of Duke Ellington, but this is also just a cool name on its own.
- Emil—The male take on Emily is finally seeing new light.
- Esme—Multiple meanings and they’re all lovely: “beloved”, “esteemed” and “emerald”.
- Emine—This trustworthy name means “one you can trust and believe”.
- Ezra—Meaning “helper” in Hebrew.
Unique baby names that start with F
- Faye—This sweet, old-fashioned name is slowly crawling back up in the popular name charts.
- Fisher—Obviously a great name for fishing enthusiasts, it also just sounds cool.
- Fleur—Say it with a French accent as this is the ultimate flower name of French origin.
- Freya—In Norse mythology, Freya was the Goddess of Love and Fertility.
- Fabian—Of Latin origin, this “bean grower” meaning has been used by Shakespeare.
- Foster—Of English origin, meaning “one who keeps the forest”.
Unique baby names that start with G
- Gracia—Of Spanish origin, meaning “favor” or “blessing”.
- Greer—This Scottish name means “watchful” or “guardian” and sounds cool for a boy or girl
- Gulliver—Naturally, Gulliver’s Travels comes to mind with this adventurous name.
- Gage—This wealthy names means “money lender” in Old English.
- Gohan—This Japanese name is great for sushi lovers, as it means “cooked rice”.
Unique baby names that start with H
- Hadley—This pretty yet uncommon name is of English origin meaning “heather field”.
- Horatio—An ancient name made famous by Shakespeare, only to drop off the popular name list in the 1500s. Bring it back?
- Harlyn—A unisex name with a nice ring to it, meaning “army land”.
- Honor—You already know the meaning and it’s a pretty special one.
- Huma—in Muslim, this name means “lucky bird”. I love that!
Unique baby names that start with I
- Ina—A Welsh name first heard in the 5th century. Foodies know and love it, thanks to cookbook author Ina Garten.
- Ivo—An unusual, catchy name of German, Irish and Dutch origin meaning “archer”.
- Iago—Of Spanish origin, this name means “supplanter”.
- Idina— A certain Disney princess (who voiced “Elsa”) has this name, but it’s far from popular.
- Idris—Same goes for a British actor Idris Elba, though I hope this one makes a resurrgance.
Unique baby names that start with J
- Jenson—This Scandinavian name has a lovely, soft tone to it. Meaning “son of Jan”.
- Juliette—Made popular by Shakespeare, we love this French spelling.
- Jago—this name is derived Jacob, from Cornish origin.
- Jett—I mean, this is just a cool, unused name, plain and simple.
- Jabari—From Swahili, meaning “brave one”.
Unique baby names that start with K
- Keira—An Anglicized name meaning “little dark one” (similar to Ciara and Kira).
- Kit—What a spunky yet simple unisex name (I’m thinking “Game of Thrones” actor Kit Harington and the American Girl doll, Kit Kittredge).
- Koa—Of Hawaiian origin meaning “warrior” and “brave one”. Typically used for boys, I like this as a girls’ name, too.
- Kian—Of Gailic Irish origin meaning “ancient”.
- Karys—This lovely Welsh name means “love”.
Unique baby names that start with L
- Leon—Roar! Of Latin origin meaning “lion”.
- Ledger—A twist on the German Leadegar, meaning “people” and “spear”.
- Lilia—A twist on popular Lily, meaning, you guessed it, “lily”.
- Lucinda—Meaning “light”, if you want a more formal name than Lucy.
- Laith—Make up your own meaning as this name doesn’t really have one, but is derived from Arabic and Scottish Gaelic.
- Lennox—Meaning “with many elm trees” which is great if you like trees, but also Annie Lennox.
Unique baby names that start with M
- Maia—A new spelling and twist on an old classic (Maya).
- Matson—If you like Matthew, Matson is an unusual take on a classic name.
- Marisol—A bright and cheerful name of Spanish origin meaning “sun and sea”.
- Marlowe—A cool name meaning “driftwood”, this one is quickly becoming a celebrity favorite.
- Maverick—This cool name means “independent; nonconformist”, so they will surely think for themselves!
- Maude—A fierce name meaning “powerful battler” and one of the coolest one syllable monikers out there.
- Millicent—This old-fashioned name comes with a pretty adorable nickname; “Millie”.
Unique baby names that start with N
- Niamh—An Irish name meaning “bright” and “radiant”; variations include Neve and Nieve.
- Nova—For the celestial-minded, a Nova is a star that suddenly releases a huge burst of energy, temporarily becoming extraordinarily bright.
- November—An underused, unisex month-themed name.
- Neve—*see Niamh above.
- Nadir—in Arabic, this name means “precious”.
Unique baby names that start with O
- Olympia—A favorite of Serena Williams, this name is of Greek origin meaning “from Mount Olympus”.
- Omari—Of Hebrew origin meaning “Speaker” or “Chief”, and in Swahili, meaning “God is exalted”.
- Orson—Meaning “bear” in Latin, it’s hard not to think of the famous director, Orson Welles.
- Otto—Of German origin meaning “wealth” and “prosperity”.
- Odin—The name of the Norse god of art, culture, wisdom and law.
Unique baby names that start with P
- Petra—A strong, Greek name meaning “rock”, this is also the feminized version of Peter.
- Pascal—Typically given to boys, this French name means “of the Passover/Easter”.
- Phinneas—Of English and Egyptian origin meaning “the Nubian”, these days you might think of singer Billie Eilish’s brother and fellow bandmate.
- Poppy—A floral name that doesn’t get more fun.
- Pacey—Of Latin origin meaning “peace”.
Unique baby names that start with Q
- Quincy—This unisex name of English origin has a royal ring to it, don’t you think?
- Qamar—in Arabic, this name means “moon”.
- Quenby—Of Scandinavian decent, this name means “womanly”.
- Quinn—There are various meaning of this name, but the best one is definitely “living with royalty”.
- Quan—in Chinese, this means Goddess of Compassion.
Unique baby names that start with R
- Rhys—Always ready to go, this name of Welsh origin means “enthusiasm”.
- Rafferty—Of Irish origin, your child will be successful with a name that means “prosperity wielder”.
- Ramona—Beverly Cleary fans will love this one, a classic, old-fashioned name that’s slowly making a comeback.
- Renata—Operatic name of Latin origin which means “rebirth”.
- Renn—means “reborn, little prosperous one”
- Rubin—From Hebrew, meaning “see, a son”.
- Romy—A lighthearted, fun “nickname-name” that doesn’t need a formal name to back it up.
- Roscoe—For those that love the outdoors, this woodsy name of Norse origin means “deer forest”.
- Rowan—Increasingly seen as a unisex name, this means “little redhead” and is of Scottish and Irish origin.
- Rocco— Take a break from baby name decisions with this Italian and German origin meaning “rest”.
Unique baby names that start with S
- Sabine—Of French origin, more commonly seen as Sabina.
- Sasha—This unisex name is of Russian origin and typically seen as a nickname for Alexander or Alexandra.
- Saffron—This “spicy” name of English origin means “a type of crocus” (the expensive orange spice, Saffron, comes from this flower).
- Sinead—Meaning “God is gracious” and of Hebrew and Irish origin.
- Silas— A name that means “of the forest” foreshadows a lot of camping and outdoor time!
- Serafina—Of Hebrew origin meaning “burning ones”, I like this twist on the more classic Sara.
- Shalia—This name is so unusual it doesn’t have an origin, but safe to say it’s a variation of other girl names that begin with “Sha”.
- Shepherd— This name means “Guardian of the sheep” and also has a cool built-in nickname: Shep.
Unique baby names that start with T
- Teddy—From Old English, meaning “wealthy protector”, “brave people” and “God’s gift”. Often seen as a nickname for Theodore.
- Tempest—Of Old English origin meaning “stormy” or “turbulent”.
- Teo—Of Spanish origin meaning “gift of God”. I also like this as a more unusual take on Theo.
- Talia—Meaning “dew of Heaven” this ethereal name is of Hebrew origin.
- True—This one may begin to see a comeback thanks to Khloe Kardashian.
Unique baby names that start with U
- Ulani—This happy-sounding name is of Hawaiin origin and means “cheerful”.
- Uma—This ancient name means “tranquility” and “splendour” in Sanskrit.
- Ulysses—Another ancient name of Latin origin meaning “wounded in the thigh”.
- Uday— To “materialize” (into this air?)
- Ugo—The Italian variant of Hugo, neaning “intelligent”.
Unique baby names that start with V
- Vaughn—This unisex name of English origin means “small” but there is nothing tiny about this cool, dignified name.
- Vera—An old-fashioned name that is very slowly making a comeback. Get it while the getting’s good!
- Virgil—This ancient, literary name is of Latin origin and means “staff bearer”.
- Viviana—A twist on the more classic Vivian.
- Vivica—This strong, powerful name means “war fortress” and is of Scandinavian and Old German origin.
Unique baby names that start with W
- Wade—Perfect for those on the move, this unisex name means “to go” and is of Anglo-Saxon English origin.
- Wells—This pretty name of English origin signifies “spring”.
- Willow—Meaning “freedom” and “willow tree” of English origin. A pretty, whimsical name.
- Winslow—An “old man’s name” that has come a long way. Meaning “friend’s hill” and of Old English origin.
- Wynn—This unisex name means “friend” and is a lovely one indeed.
- Wren—Like you might suspect, this name means “small bird” and is of English origin.
Unique baby names that start with X
- Xen—Meaning “form of Buddhism”this zen-like name works for either gender.
- Xander—Of Greek origin meaning “defender of men”.
- Xena—From Xenia, meaning “hospitable” and “welcoming”.
- Xia—This Chinese name means “glow of the sunset or sunrise”. How pretty.
- Xanthe—Of Greek origin, meaning “yellow” or “fair”.
Unique baby names that start with Y
- Yael—(also spelled Jael), this Hebrew name sets a spiritual tone, meaning “to ascend”.
- Yardley—There’s no doubt the meaning of this English name is unexpected: “from the wood where spars were got”.
- Yair—Another Biblical name, this means “He will enlighten”.
- Yoel—in Hebrew, this means “Jehovah is the Lord”.
- Yuvan—A young prince in Sanskrit.
Unique baby names that start with Z
- Zeren—This name is so unusual it belongs to a very specific animal breed, the Mongolian Gazelle.
- Zia—Of Latin and Arabic origin meaning “light” or “splendor”.
- Ziggy—Adorable nickname for Zigmund or a fun unisex nickname-name on its own.
- Zion—A setting in the Bible, this name means “highest point” in Hebrew.
- Zora—Early risers will love this name which means “dawn” and is of Slavic origin.