Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, we discuss reader’s name questions, usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.

IT HAS TO BE A B NAME

Julia writes:

There is only one thing we have to do for our first child’s name: it has to start with a B. It’s from a family tradition on my husband’s side, and because he’s ruling out 25/26 letters of the alphabet, he has agreed that he’ll go along with pretty much any B name I like.

For a girl, this is easy. I’ve always liked Beatrice, and we’d probably call her Bea. So that’s following the assignment exactly!

But for a boy, I have a very long list and can’t seem to make any progress. My husband kind of vaguely likes them all, so that’s not really helpful.

Another factor: we will not use another B name for any future child.

At this point, we are having a delivery surprise but I am tempted to find out because choosing a boy’s name has been so hard!

Our last name sounds like Learn-with-a-D, so short names can be tricky.

My list of names I’ve considered, but I’m not sure about so far:

• Benedict – maybe too fussy?
• Bennett, Benjamin – not sure I like the nickname Ben with our last name, almost sounds like bender
• Boden – feels maybe too trendy?
• Brayden – not my style, but I don’t hate it
• Bryce – I like the way it flows with our last name, but feels very 90s to me
• Bode, Bodhi – I just don’t think this works for our family, but I want to like it

I know there are other names, but I feel like I’ve gone name-blind looking at lists. We’re not going to name a kid Basil or Beauregard, so I feel like the name must be one I’ve already looked at and just don’t really see yet, if that makes sense?

Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

FOCUSING ON NAMES STARTING WITH B

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your firstborn!

This is one of those moments, isn’t it? If you’re having a girl, you’ve chosen a great name. Everyone is happy! You can move on to thinking all sorts of other new-parent things.

But, but, but … there’s a 50/50 chance you’ll need a boy name. And it seems like you’re miles away from agreement.

I mean … “I don’t hate it” isn’t really the strongest endorsement of a child’s name, right?

Let’s review your current list:

• Benedict, Bennett, Benjamin – If you liked Ben names, I’d probably suggest you shrug off the nickname/last name issue. Especially if you chose Bennett or Benedict, which are less likely to be shortened. But since you’re not a huge fan, I think we can rule out this set of names.
• Boden, Brayden, Bode, Bodhi – Other issues aside, I think the strong D sound runs up against your surname. Bode Learn-with-a-D is a lot of B/D consonant. Since these aren’t favorites, I think we can move on.
• Bryce – It’s true that Bryce peaked in the late 1990s/early 2000s. I’m not sure that rules it out, though. What I notice most about Bryce? Like Beatrice, it ends with a soft S sound, which flows nicely into your surname.

I think Bryce is probably the name to beat. Or at least a good model: find B names that don’t include a strong D sound … maybe.

Let’s consider some more B names for a firstborn that are worth a closer look.

FRESH B NAMES FOR BOYS

BASTIAN

Sebastian reads like a traditional name, even if it was (relatively) unusual in American English until recently. Drop the “se” and it fits with the list of B names for a firstborn. In 1984 movie The NeverEnding Story, the little boy who discovers the story is named Bastian Balthazar Bux.

BAYLOR

The name of a Texas university, but also a surname name currently ranked in the US Top 500 for boys. Baylor is an update to Taylor and Bailey, too.

BECKETT

There’s something almost traditional about Beckett. Maybe it’s all the literary and historical overtones: 20th century Irish writer Samuel Beckett; the 12th century martyr St. Thomas Becket, immortalized in writing over the years. Even though it’s only ranked in the US Top 1000 for boys since 2006, it feels traditional.

BLAKE

Polished Blake offers a strong, distinctive sound. It might be a bit too short with your surname, but I think it has potential.

BOWEN

A softer alternative to Boden. Like Bennett and Beckett, Bowen started out as a surname. In this case, it means “son of Owen.”

BOWIE

There’s also Bowie, a rock star last name with a hint of Americana, too.

BRECKEN

One more two-syllable, ends-with-N name that sidesteps the hard D sound.

BROOKS

I think Brooks is the 2020s update to Bryce.

Overall, I really like the way Bowen sounds, but I wonder if Beckett is more your style? It strikes me as the closest equivalent to Beatrice, even if it’s maybe a touch more modern.

A common piece of advice is to consider future children’s names. What else is on your list? I can see Beckett working with traditional names like Henry or Caroline, but also with more modern staples, like Avery and Miles.

Readers, over to you! Can you suggest more B names for a firstborn – especially a boy?

The post Finding B Baby Names for a Firstborn appeared first on Appellation Mountain.

Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, we discuss reader’s name questions, usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.

WE AGREE ON THE NAME

Brooke writes:

Our first child, a boy, will be here this summer. We are so close to agreeing on his name, and we already know what we plan to call him: Zach.

I’m writing to you because we are trying to figure out the right form of his name. We are honoring my husband’s uncle, his mom’s youngest brother, Zachary. He passed away before we met and didn’t have children of his own. He and my husband were very close and this name has always been my husband’s wish, even before we were talking about children.

Our last name sounds like Emery. So while we plan to call our son Zach, I don’t really like “Zachary Emery” together. My husband agrees. As long as we call our son Zach, the formal name doesn’t matter as much.

We have discussed these options:

• Zachariah – We both like the sound, but maybe it’s a little too different
• Zacharias – I love the way this sounds, my husband isn’t so sure but would be okay with it
• Zakai/Zachai – My husband loves this, I feel like maybe it’s a little too something? I do like that he could be Kai in the future if he didn’t want to be Zach
• Zach – This one is growing on me
• Zack – I kind of like the way this is “Jack-with-a-Z”
• Zac – Or maybe this? It seems kind of snappy and fun

The original Zachary spelled his named differently at different times. He was always Zack in school, but switched to Zach once he graduated. We don’t know why or how he felt about it, we just know he made the change.

I feel like Zach is the correct spelling for the nickname, or possibly Zac. But I feel like Zack looks better if it’s his full name.

We’re running out of time to decide and I’m a little worried that we’ll end up with his name chosen by default, just going with Zachary and not having a consistent spelling for his nickname.

Can you help us decide? I feel like there’s not any clear reason to choose one over the other.

Please read on for my response and share your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

WORKING THROUGH THE OPTIONS

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your new son!

I think it’s smart to update an honor name slightly for a new generation. It works better with your surname, and gives your son the best of both worlds: a connection to his family, but also an identity of his own.

You’ve already spotted the key challenge, though. How do you choose which changes to make?

I think it might help to split this into two distinct choices:

1. Should you choose a formal name?
2. How do you choose between spellings/endings?

If you can start by answering the first question, you’ll instantly cut your options in half.

So …

Should you choose a formal name?

I’m going to start by saying yes. Why not, right? Even if you use the short form 90% of the time, it’s always there if you feel like you’d like something more formal. It’s easy to shorten a longer name. The opposite isn’t true.

Between the three choices – Zachariah, Zacharias, Zakai/Zachai – it seems like you both kind-of, sort-of, almost agree on Zachariah.

Better still? Zachary ranks in the US Top 200, but Zachariah is the next-most popular, charting in the 500s, followed by Zakai in the 600s. Zacharias and Zachai are pretty unusual, not even in the Top 1000.

That’s not always the best way to make a decision, but if you’re trying to find the most familiar version? Zachariah actually checks that box.

So I’d suggest you start with Zachariah as your front-runner and measure the other names against it.

How do you choose between spellings?

Let’s look at popularity data again.

Your instinct about Zack/Jack seems to be accurate. As an independent name, Zack is most common, followed by Zach, with Zac in last place.

But as a nickname? My guess is that the numbers aren’t that straightforward. After all, people do change their nicknames over their lifetimes – just like your late relative.

I don’t have a great reason for preferring Zach, except that the letters are right there with Zachariah and I feel like it’s the most widely-used now. 2020s parents tend to prefer nickname spellings that hew closely to the names themselves. (Case in point: Zakai is more traditionally spelled Zaccai, but the rise of Kai has pushed Zakai into wider use.)

Still, based on the numbers and your preference for Jack-with-a-Z, I think I’d nudge Zack into top place as a standalone name.

But I’ll be very curious to hear what others think on both counts.

I will say this: you’re not going to make a mistake in this narrow range of choices. They all meet both of your goals: honoring a loved one and giving your son a great start with a name all his own.

Readers, over to you! What’s the right form of Zachary for this family?

The post Choosing the Right Form of Zachary appeared first on Appellation Mountain.

Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, we discuss reader’s name questions, usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.

A BROTHER FOR REID and GIBSON

AK writes:

I’m wondering if you have any name suggestions for a 6th child?

We’re looking for a boy name. His middle name will be Dale.

Siblings are:

• Reid Dale
• Gibson Dale
• Sadie Marguerite
• Ida Geneviève
• Hazel Evangelina

Our last name rhymes with Owen.

We would love any help!

Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

FINDING FRESH OPTIONS

Abby replies:

Congratulations on baby six!

I’m going to make a few assumptions about your style and preferences:

• Because you haven’t repeated initials thus far, I’m going to assume we’re avoiding names that start with G, H, I, R, or S. This rule gets harder to follow as our families grow, but I’m guessing we can work with this constraint.
• We’re looking for polished boy names. That doesn’t mean classic – I don’t hear Charles or David appealing. While Reid and Gibson sound like 21st century picks, I can imagine both names at home in the 19th century, too. There’s a strength and a quietly traditional energy to names like this, and I’m guessing we’re looking for the same.
• Your boys’ name style is slightly different from your girls’ name style. While your daughters’ names feel distinctly vintage, I’m not sure we’re looking for the masculine equivalent of Ida, Hazel, or Sadie. A name like Archie, maybe, doesn’t feel quite right.
• Also noteworthy: your kids’ names all have different ending sounds. After five children, that’s quite a feat! I think this might be harder to continue, but I’m bearing it in mind.
• Popularity isn’t a major factor. At least, your kids’ names span the Top 100 to the not-in-the-Top 1000.
• Lastly, I’m guessing you don’t use nicknames. At least not anything derived from your children’s names.

FINDING POLISHED BOY NAMES

ARCHER

A strong sound, with an ending that hasn’t been used previously.

BECKETT

A good blend of strong, surname style with a smooth polish.

CALLUM

Callum blends traditional roots with a name that isn’t especially popular in the US, at least not until recent years.

JASPER

A little bit on the vintage side, Jasper feels like a brother for Ida, Hazel, and Sadie, but also a good match for your boys’ names.

MILES

A well-established first name with a bit of surname style, Miles splits the difference between Reid and Gibson.

TOWNES

While Townes doesn’t crack the current Top 1000, it fits in nicely with current trends.

XAVIER

An old school name with a distinctive sound.

WELLS

William might be too traditional, but Wells is a 21st century alternative to Will, with a sprinkling of well-being and positive energy.

Overall, I really like Archer Dale for your son’s name. I think it’s the right balance, one of those polished boy names that’s not quite vintage or modern. I love it with Reid, Gibson, Sadie, Ida, and Hazel, too. If not Jasper, then I’ll put Miles a close second.

Readers, over to you – can you suggest some polished boy names that go with siblings Reid, Gibson, Sadie, Ida, and Hazel?

The post Strong and Polished Boy Names for Baby Six appeared first on Appellation Mountain.

Name Help is a series at Appellation Mountain. Every week, we discuss reader’s name questions, usually on Tuesdays and Fridays. We’re relying on thoughtful comments from the community to help expectant parents narrow down their name decisions. Thank you in advance for sharing your insight! To have your question considered, email appmtn (at) gmail. Looking for your own private #namehelp post? Order one here.

DOES ANNABETH’S SISTER NEED A DOUBLE NAME?

Katelyn writes:

Our daughter’s name is Annabeth. Yes, I got it from the Percy Jackson character. No, I didn’t completely realize that a new series was coming out. It was my favorite girl’s name since I read the books. I don’t mind it, though, because the series is good and because it is helping other people understand her name better, though she still gets called Annabelle a lot.

There are women named Anne/Elizabeth in our families. My middle name is Anne. But it was never planned for that reason and I’m a little annoyed by assumptions that we chose the name for Great Aunt Annie or whatever. If we’d meant it that way, we’d have said so!

Anyway, our second daughter is due in June and I would like another name like Annabeth, not from a series, but in the sense that it’s not too common but has good associations and doesn’t feel made-up.

While I didn’t see it at the time, Annabeth’s name and my name are both combinations. Anna-Beth, Kate-Lyn. Again, we didn’t plan it that way, but I’ve been thinking about other double names.

So far I have:

• Emmaleigh – I’m not crazy about Emily, but maybe changing the spelling makes it more like Emma-Lee?
• Hazelgrace – from The Fault in Our Stars but I don’t know if it really works for real and also naming two girls two double names from two books is maybe too much?
• Mariella – I like this, but maybe too fussy with Annabeth, and is it weird that both girls have one-half of Elizabeth (Ella and Beth) in their names?
• Sophie-Mae – Not sure how to spell this, it’s not really a double name, it’s more of two names said together, right?
• Stella-Rose – Same problem as Sophie-Mae.

Annabeth’s middle name is Presley. My husband picked it, kind of out of nowhere, but I really like it. Our last name sounds like Martin-plus-Ezz. This is another issue. We don’t speak Spanish, but our last name can make it look like we might. We don’t want to use a name like Isabella/Sofia that might be confusing, at least on paper. People at work sometimes assume I’m bilingual just from my last name, and I wish, but no.

My husband is pretty chill about names, so I’ll mostly pick the first name (but he can veto) and he’ll mostly choose the middle (I can veto, but I probably won’t!)

Please read on for my response and leave your thoughtful suggestions in the comments.

THE BEST TRADITIONAL(ISH) CHOICES FOR ANNABETH’S SISTER

Abby replies:

Congratulations on your new daughter!

Let me say it loud and clear here: you don’t have to follow a pattern.

If you find a double name you love, great! But if the right name presents itself and it’s a little different? That can work out every bit as well.

Because there are lots of great names for Annabeth’s sister, and only some of them are double-barreled.

Let’s look at your current list.

EMMALEIGH – I’d rule it out. The spelling makes this look like a double name, but the pronunciation is straight-up classic Emily. Which is a lovely, enduring, classic of a name! But not what you’re after.

HAZELGRACE – I don’t think this is too tied to the book/movie. A solid contender … and yet, it feels more like “Hazel Grace” run together than a new name.

MARIELLA – Very pretty. I wouldn’t overthink the two-halves-of-Elizabeth thing. After all, Mariella is both a Marie-Ella combination and an elaboration of Maria. I think this is the strongest contender so far.

SOPHIE-MAE, STELLA-ROSE – I have the same thoughts on both of these names. First, hyphens are tricky. Second, It feels like you want one name that happens to combine elements of two names, not Sophie-Mae/Sophiemae. So for the same reasons that Hazelgrace doesn’t satisfy, I’m not sure either of these work.

FRESH SUGGESTIONS: DOUBLE NAMES LIKE ANNABETH

ELLAROSE

Building on Stella-Rose, I wonder if you’d like Ellarose? It blends together more naturally and looks like a complete name.

EVANGELINE

Strictly speaking, Evangeline is a single name from the Greek for good news. It reads slightly spiritual, since it’s the same root as the word evangelize. But it also looks a bit like an Eva-Angelina combination.

JESSAMINE

Like Evangeline, Jessamine is a legit name. In this case, it’s an older version of Jasmine. There’s also Jessamy. I like the way Jessamine has the same tailored ending as Annabeth. Jessamy might sound even better with your surname. Both look like Jessa-plus combinations.

JULIETTE

It’s not a double name, but this French elaboration of Julie/Julia seems like it’s a strong option for Annabeth’s sister.

MARIELLE

If Mariella is almost right, would Marielle be exactly perfect? It’s a touch less frilly, but still feminine and strong.

MARIGOLD

Strictly speaking, Marigold started out as two words: Mary’s Gold. But it’s long been a floral. Maryrose feels a little antique, but Marigold is as fresh as Violet or Daisy.

ROSALIE

Emmaleigh is an attempt to make Emily a double name. Rosalie is an elaboration that sounds like a double. I love the way it sounds with Annabeth and with your last name, too.

STELLAMARIS

A double name from a Latin phrase, Stellamaris means “star of the sea.” Because it’s associated with the Virgin Mary, this reads slightly Catholic. But only a little. I think it works as a double name in our moment with nature names so popular.

Overall, I’m most drawn to Ellarose and Marielle, probably because they’re slight variations on your original list. Ellarose Jordan or Marielle Sutton, maybe? From my suggestions I love Marigold. Maybe Marigold Henley. If you’re not wild about the alliteration of Marielle Martin-plus-Ezz or Marigold Martin-plus-Ezz, then Ellarose rises to the top spot. Otherwise, it’s much harder to choose! And since I do like the M.M. initials, I’m especially drawn to Marigold.

Readers, over to you! What would you name Annabeth’s sister?

The post Naming Annabeth’s Sister: Traditional Girl Names with a Twist appeared first on Appellation Mountain.

The votes are in! We have a new pair of names to add to the list of champions in March Madness Baby Names.

Yes, that’s right – names. Not basketball teams.

Every March, we take the sixteen most-viewed boys’ names and sixteen most-viewed girls’ names from the prior calendar year. In a bracket-style competition, we vote our way through until we have our set of champions.

BOYS TOURNAMENT: STARTING WITH THE SWEET SIXTEEN

• JETT
• CREW
• ADRIAN
• ZOHRAN
• CORBIN
• ELIO
• TOWNES
• HUXLEY
• ORRIN
• COVE
• WELLS
• ETHAN
• BLAISE
• ATLAS
• LANDO
• BOONE

GIRLS TOURNAMENT: STARTING WITH THE SWEET SIXTEEN

• TALLULAH
• SCOTTIE
• RUMI
• VALANCY
• CELESTE
• JAMES
• ROMILLY
• SYLVIA
• HARRIET
• AZURA
• DARCY
• LILA
• LILLIAN
• VESPER
• MABEL
• ASTRID

THE NEW NAMES JOIN PAST CHAMPIONS

• Nathaniel and Louisa in 2011
• Arthur and Genevieve in 2012
• Archer and Isla in 2013
• Everett and Cora in 2014
• Finn and Cora in 2015*
• Theodore and Sylvie in 2016
• Leo and Wren in 2017
• Rowan and Eliza in 2018
• Arlo and Margot in 2019
• Caspian and Tess in 2020
• Raphael and Magnolia in 2021
• August and Marigold in 2022
• James and Gemma in 2023
• Callum and Maisie in 2024

*In 2015, Cora defended the title. After that, the Appellation Mountain community decided that no past winner could compete in future matches.

BOYS FINAL MATCH: ADRIAN VERSUS ETHAN

With a little over 52% of the vote, Adrian defeats Ethan and takes the March Madness Baby Names title for 2026.

GIRLS FINAL MATCH: MABEL VERSUS SYLVIA

In a similarly close match, Mabel took just over 55% of the vote against Sylvia.

It’s easy to imagine both contests going the other way, though, which is what makes March Madness Baby Names so thrilling. (Maybe that’s true in sports, too?)

Thank you for your votes, comments, and for just plain having FUN with names this month!

The post March Madness Baby Names 2026: The Winners appeared first on Appellation Mountain.