If you’re having trouble finding a vintage boy name that isn’t insanely popular, you're not alone.
“There actually are fewer boys names to choose from,” Laura Wattenberg, creator of Namerology, told TODAY Parents. “If you look back at any given period, it’s going to be John, William, and James. Boys names didn’t come in and out of fashion in the same way that girls names did.”
But there are still plenty of interesting antique names to choose from that feel fresh and modern.
“Names today are all about sound,” Wattenberg explained. “It’s a very smooth, light, and vowel-driven sound. That’s why you see so many Amelias and Olivias and so few Gertrudes and Mildreds.”
Wattenberg, author of the “Baby Name Wizard” handbook, noted that some parents aren't opposed to big groups of voiced consonants, such as in Mildred.
“Those heavier names stand out more today,” she said. “For instance, Conrad will stand out in a sea of names rhyming with Aiden.”
Wattenberg recommends looking for names that are tied to a historical figure such as Woodrow, after former President Woodrow Wilson, who served from 1913 to 1921. (Woodrow made Wattenberg’s list, below.) You can also research your own family tree for unexpected gems.
Here are the overall top 26 old man names for boys, according to Namerology.
Alvin
Archibald
Buck
Clyde
Conrad
Edmund
Gus
Hardy
Harlan
Harris
Herschel
Jules
Lionel
Mack
Ned
Otis
Palmer
Prescott
Roland
Roy
Rupert
Stanton
Wallace
Walton
Ward
Woodrow
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