Parents follow broad trends when choosing middle names for boys. Traditionally, the middle spot is reserved for a family name for boys; however, as naming a son after his father became less popular, sometimes a dad's name was used as a middle name.
Today, both traditional and trendy middle names rank high for parents-to-be.
Popular middle names for boys
Pamela Redmond, baby name consultant and founder of Nameberry, told TODAY Parents that a boy’s middle name might also be the name of one — or both — of his grandfathers.
"Mom’s surname is also a contemporary choice as a middle name for boys," Redmond said, adding that word names, nature names and place names also have become more popular as middle names.
"The middle names might be a spot where you can get more adventurous than you do with the first name," Redmond said. "This is true especially for boys, who are still more likely to get one of the more traditional or popular boys’ names as a first name and so parents may feel like they can go a little wilder in second place."
Honor names for boys
Redmond shared that some parents might use the middle spot for an honor name for someone they admire outside the family.
"King, as in Dr. Martin Luther, or Lennon, for Beatle John, are two popular choices," she said.
Two middle names for boys
Redmond said another trend, especially with the spotlight on royal babies, is two middle names.
"For boys, these might be two honor names as in their two grandfathers, or they might be one honor name plus one that’s much more adventurous," she said. "As parents have fewer children, this is a way to wedge in more names you love."
One-syllable middle names for boys
Of course, middle names can still work as connective tissue between the first and the last names, which favors short one-syllable names.
Traditional choices like James, John and Lee are still used as middle names, but there are also new one-syllable favorites such as Blue, Rue and Ren.
Top 5 middle names for boys overall:
1. James
2. Alexander
3. Henry
4. Michael
5. William
Top 5 contemporary middle names for boys:
1. Arthur
2. Theodore
3. Fox
4. Frederick
5. Wilder
Top 100 middle names for boys
Redmond said many parents are interested in middle names in terms of the rhythm of the whole name and how to create a "pleasing" flow.
"In general, the best rhythm is an unequal number of syllables in each name, so if you have a two-syllable last name, you might go with a three-syllable first and one-syllable middle or vice versa," she explained. "The same number of syllables for each name is generally not recommended, though other considerations like family or meaning might be more important."
Here are the overall top middle names for boys, according to Nameberry.com:
- Kai
- Finn
- Jude
- Oscar
- Atlas
- James
- Henry
- Nico
- River
- Orion
- Rhys
- Thomas
- Alexander
- Louis
- Bodhi
- Jack
- Max
- Knox
- Xavier
- Danger
- Flynn
- Maverick
- Zephyr
- Seth
- Ash
- Wilder
- George
- William
- Hayes
- Lennox
- Cole
- Bear
- Tate
- Hunter
- Apollo
- Sage
- Ralph
- Anthony
- Nash
- Brooks
- Francis
- Onyx
- Wolf
- Fox
- Lawrence
- Ray
- Winston
- Leif
- Cash
- Grant
- John
- Edward
- Charles
- Mac
- Blaise
- Amadeus
- Crew
- Grey
- Easton
- Gray
- Sirius
- Reed
- Forest
- Hendrix
- Arden
- David
- Joseph
- Jay
- Bowie
- Christian
- Valentine
- Lennon
- Clay
- Paul
- Rye
- Kit
- Lane
- Cedar
- Ocean
- Ben
- Mark
- Raven
- Colt
- Sky
- Robert
- Aries
- Drew
- Sam
- Gage
- Nova
- Zen
- Beck
- Dash
- Huck
- Van
- Stone
- Jericho
- Cruz
- Art
- Ever
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