10 N Names You Never Thought of Using: Boys

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Noah was the man of the year, taking the title of "most popular name" away from Jacob. He's a very likable name, but not all parents are okay with the idea of using the Number One. That's where I come in. This list has some great N names (some very similar to Noah), that aren't even in the top 500.

Nacio- He's a short form of Ignacio, but sounds modern and fresh on his own.

Ned- Ned is a British nickname that more American parents should embrace. 

Niels- I'm a sucker for Scandinavian names (they're short, but they pack a punch!), and I think Niels is great. He's too close to Nell for me to put him on my list, but I encourage other people to do so.

Nigel- Ned not English enough for you? Try Nigel. He's a smart and quirky name that could potentially catch on with hipsters (I predict).

Nikos- I'm seventeen, and so many of the boys in my grade are named Nick. It has become dated. Nikos is a nice alternative.

Nino- Oh, Nino. Ever since watching Amelie, I've fallen in love with this name. He's so charming, but I'm not sure he would work on an American adult.

Noam- I did promise you names that were similar to Noah. Noam is cool and ages much better than Nino. Plus, you can decorate his nursery with gnomes!

Noble- He's a strong virtue name with tons of potential. Even if you don't love him as a first, imagine how awesome he'd be as a middle.

Noe- You could always just go with the first syllable of Noah. Noe is a very cool name in theory, though I think it could be a little confusing.

Noon- Noon is a spunky word name that would work well if it held significance. Perhaps his parents got engaged at noon, or he was born at 12:00 p.m. Then it would be cute.

Hidden Names

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It's always fun to think of clever ways to name twins (or siblings, for that matter). One possible way to do it is to give one child a long name, and the other child a short name that fits inside. I call this "Hidden Names." To qualify as a Hidden Name, the short name must fit entirely inside the longer one, with at least one letter at either end. There are obviously a lot of Hidden Name sets out there, so I chose the one that make the best sibsets. Take a look, and tell me if you think of any more.

Boy/Boy:
Abbott and Bo
Benedict and Ned

Girl/Girl:
Amaryllis and Mary
Belinda and Elin
Charlotte and Harlo
Eloise and Lois
Gardenia and Arden
Genevieve and Evie
Guinevere and Neve
Isabella and Sabel
Lainey and Aine
Madelena and Adele
Reverie and Eve

Girl/Boy:
Aidan and Ida
Carlotta and Arlo
Eleonora and Leo
Faustina and Austin
Florence and Oren
Lelia and Eli
Michaela and Chae
Mirabel and Ira
Nicolina and Colin
Sabella and Abel
Everard and Vera

Full Names for Ned

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Ned is an Old English contraction, coming from the phrase "mine Edward" or "mine Edmund." Hence, any name that starts with an Ed- is worthy of the nickname Ned. He's spunky, not used much in the U.S., but also really adorable. Listed below are some choices for Ned's full name.

Expected:
Edison- Trendiest of the group, he has that popular surname feel.
Edmund- Extremely British, yet very useable here.
Edward- Straightforward, but a classic.
Edwin- An overlooked choice to consider.

Unique:
Eden- Yes, it looks like the girls name Eden. But in Israel it's a boys name pronounced ED-in. Maybe spell is Edan.
Edgar- A la Poe.
Edge- I'm not going to lie, Ned and Edge have very different feels, this combination would surprise me.

Unheard of:
Edom- He means "red" in Hebrew.
Edric- Another cool British choice, he could possibly honor an Eric.
Edsel- A German name that could work in the U.S., especially with Ned as the nickname.