Occupational Names

An occupation name that sounds odd to the modern ear but enjoyed some use a century ago. May make a comeback as a more genteel brother to the new union of boys (and girls) with worker names such as Mason, Carter, and Bailey.

Chaplin carries two very distinctive images: the beloved Little Tramp and a minister, often to the military. It was the baby-name choice of Ever Carridine in 2010.

About 40 baby boys were named Artist -- not Picasso, not Art -- in the US in one recent year. But not so odd, when you consider all the occupational names, from Sawyer to Sergeant, stylish today. The name Artist is also starting to register on the girls' side of the ledger, making Artist a name as gender-neutral as the occupation.

Surname of a fifteenth-century saint and a twenty-first-century quarterback, Brett Favre.

Doctor is an honorific used as a name, somewhat like names such as Bishop, King, and Princess. Banned in New Zealand, Doctor can lead to the kind of confusion you may feel would be only positive for your child -- a bona fide Doctor before he even gets to kindergarten. At its zenith in 1884, Doctor was used for 12 boys, but last year it didn't even clear the five-baby minimum to make it onto the Social Security extended list.

Member of a newly chic name genre. Bonus: its relationship to author William Faulkner.

fuhgeddaboutit.

Whether pronounced like the wag of a tail or as the correct German VAHG-ner, this might be something a devoted opera buff could consider as a middle name.

We don't see that bright a future for this one either.

Might be an honorific for novelist Saul Bellow, although bellowing is not the gentlest of sounds. Consider Saul instead.

Drover, an ancient occupational surname, is right in step with today's styles and would make a distinctive choice. Drover and brothers are fresh updates of such now-widely-used names as Carter and Cooper.

One celebrity baby Pilot put this occupational choice into the pool -- together with the middle name Inspektor, something we wouldn't advise following.

A German occupational surname deriving from the German word Bad, meaning "bath". Its most famous bearer in recent years has been (the notorious) RBG – former Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, making this a great feminist name or a nod to a lawyer in the family. Its simple, dynamic, er-ending sound fits right in with the likes of Hunter, Carter and Baker.

Possible Hayden alternative.

Dozier means a person who lives near the willows or reeds. It may be an occupational name referring to a basket maker.

Eighties star Judge Reinhold (born Edward Jr. , he was given this nickname at the age of two weeks) made this possible, but it could cause a lot of confusion.

A simple, self-possessed, somewhat serious surname, which might work better as a middle.

One Irish surname that will never make it as a first.

This traditionally male surname name could find new life for girls thanks to its similarity to the popular Abby and Abigail.