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A complete A-Z directory of English baby names for 2026 — every letter of the alphabet, boys and girls, with meanings, origins, and popularity notes. Compiled with real UK Office for National Statistics 2024 data and traditional English naming heritage. A genuine reference for parents choosing a name, and for anyone personalising a baby gift.

How to Use This Guide

This is a reference article, not a ranking. Each letter section has both boys' and girls' names that are either currently popular in the UK (per the 2024 ONS release) or genuinely classic English names with lasting heritage. Meanings are drawn from established etymological sources.

For personalised baby gifts, spelling matters — always confirm the exact spelling with the family before ordering.

A

Boys:

• Arthur — “bear” (Celtic-Welsh origin) — #4 in UK 2024
• Alfie — short for Alfred, “wise counsel” (Old English) — UK top 10
• Archie — short for Archibald, “genuine, bold” (Germanic) — #10 UK 2024
• Alexander — “defender of men” (Greek)
• Albert — “noble, bright” (Germanic)

Girls:

• Amelia — “industrious” (Germanic) — #2 in UK 2024
• Ava — “bird” or “life” (Latin/Germanic) — #9 UK 2024
• Alice — “noble” (Germanic)
• Aria — “melody, air” (Italian)
• Anna — “grace” (Hebrew)

B

Boys:

• Benjamin — “son of the right hand” (Hebrew)
• Bobby — short for Robert, “bright fame”
• Brody — “muddy place” (Scottish)
• Bear — nature name, rising 2024
• Beau — “handsome” (French)

Girls:

• Bonnie — “pretty” (Scottish)
• Beatrice — “bringer of joy” (Latin)
• Bella — “beautiful” (Italian)
• Bethany — “house of figs” (biblical)
• Blake — “dark, fair-haired” (Old English)

C

Boys:

• Charlie — short for Charles, “free man” (Germanic)
• Callum — “dove” (Scottish-Gaelic) — rising 2026
• Caleb — “whole-hearted” (Hebrew)
• Carter — “cart maker” (Old English)
• Christopher — “Christ-bearer” (Greek)

Girls:

• Charlotte — feminine of Charles, “free woman”
• Chloe — “blooming” (Greek)
• Clara — “bright, clear” (Latin)
• Camilla — “attendant” (Latin)
• Connie — short for Constance, “steadfast”

D

Boys:

• Daniel — “God is my judge” (Hebrew)
• David — “beloved” (Hebrew)
• Dylan — “son of the sea” (Welsh)
• Dexter — “dyer, right-handed” (Latin/Old English)
• Duncan — “dark warrior” (Scottish)

Girls:

• Daisy — flower name (Old English, “day's eye”)
• Delilah — “delicate” (Hebrew)
• Darcy — “from Arcy” (Anglo-French)
• Dorothy — “gift of God” (Greek)
• Delphine — “dolphin” (Greek)

E

Boys:

• Edward — “wealthy guardian” (Old English)
• Ethan — “strong, enduring” (Hebrew)
• Elijah — “my God is Yahweh” (Hebrew)
• Elliot — “Jehovah is God” (Hebrew)
• Edwin — “rich friend” (Old English)

Girls:

• Elsie — short for Elizabeth — #10 UK 2024
• Evie — short for Eve, “life”
• Emily — “rival, industrious” (Latin)
• Emma — “whole, universal” (Germanic)
• Eloise — “healthy, wise” (French) — new UK top 100 in 2024

F

Boys:

• Freddie — short for Frederick, “peaceful ruler”
• Finley — “fair-haired hero” (Scottish-Gaelic)
• Felix — “happy, fortunate” (Latin)
• Finn — “fair” (Irish)
• Frankie — short for Frank/Francis, “free man”

Girls:

• Florence — “flourishing” (Latin) — #6 UK 2024
• Freya — Norse goddess of love — #7 UK 2024
• Faye — “fairy” (Old French)
• Frances — “free” (Latin)
• Fern — nature name (Old English)

G

Boys:

• George — “farmer” (Greek) — #6 UK 2024
• Gabriel — “God is my strength” (Hebrew)
• Grayson — “son of the reeve” (Old English)
• Gordon — “spacious meadow” (Scottish)
• Graham — “gravelly home” (Old English)

Girls:

• Grace — “grace, charm” (Latin)
• Georgia — feminine of George
• Gemma — “precious stone” (Italian)
• Gwen — “white, fair” (Welsh)
• Genevieve — “tribe woman” (Germanic)

H

Boys:

• Harry — short for Henry/Harold, “home ruler”
• Henry — “home ruler” (Germanic)
• Hugo — “mind, intellect” (Germanic)
• Hunter — occupational name (Old English)
• Hudson — “Hugh's son” (Old English)

Girls:

• Harper — “harp player” (Old English)
• Hannah — “grace” (Hebrew)
• Hazel — tree name (Old English)
• Holly — plant name (Old English)
• Heidi — “noble” (Germanic)

I

Boys:

• Isaac — “he will laugh” (Hebrew)
• Ivan — Slavic form of John
• Idris — “interpreter” (Welsh)
• Ibrahim — “father of nations” (Arabic/Hebrew)
• Iain — Scottish Gaelic form of John

Girls:

• Isla — “island” (Scottish) — #4 UK 2024
• Ivy — plant name (Old English) — #5 UK 2024
• Isabella — “pledged to God” (Italian)
• Isabelle — French form of Isabella
• Iris — “rainbow” (Greek)

J

Boys:

• James — “supplanter” (Hebrew)
• Jack — short for John
• Jacob — “holder of the heel” (Hebrew)
• Joshua — “God is salvation” (Hebrew)
• Joseph — “God shall add” (Hebrew)

Girls:

• Jessica — “God beholds” (Hebrew)
• Julia — “youthful” (Latin)
• Jasmine — flower name (Persian)
• Josephine — feminine of Joseph
• Juno — Roman goddess

K

Boys:

• Kai — “sea” (Welsh/Hawaiian/Nordic)
• Kenneth — “handsome” (Scottish)
• Killian — Irish variant of Cillian, “church”
• Kyle — “narrow strait” (Scottish)
• Kian — “ancient” (Irish)

Girls:

• Kate / Katie / Katherine — “pure” (Greek)
• Kira — “little dark one” (Irish)
• Kelsey — “victorious ship” (Old English)
• Kayla — “pure”
• Kirsty — Scottish form of Christina

L

Boys:

• Leo — “lion” (Latin) — #5 UK 2024
• Luca — “light” (Italian/Latin) — #7 UK 2024
• Louis — “renowned warrior” (Germanic)
• Liam — short for William
• Lucas — “light” (Latin)

Girls:

• Lily — flower name — #3 UK 2024
• Lucy — “light” (Latin)
• Layla — “night” (Arabic/Hebrew)
• Luna — “moon” (Latin)
• Lyla — variant of Layla

M

Boys:

• Muhammad — “praiseworthy” — #1 UK 2024
• Max — short for Maximilian, “greatest”
• Michael — “who is like God?” (Hebrew)
• Mason — “stone worker” (Old French)
• Milo — “soldier” (Germanic/Latin)

Girls:

• Mia — “mine” (Italian/Scandinavian)
• Maisie — short for Margaret, “pearl”
• Myla — new UK top 100 in 2024
• Molly — short for Mary
• Matilda — “mighty in battle” (Germanic)

N

Boys:

• Noah — “rest, comfort” (Hebrew) — #2 UK 2024
• Nathan — “gift” (Hebrew) — new UK top 100 in 2024
• Nicholas — “people of victory” (Greek)
• Nathaniel — “gift of God” (Hebrew)
• Nico — short for Nicholas

Girls:

• Nora — short for Honora, “honour” — new UK top 100 2024
• Nova — “new” (Latin)
• Nancy — short for Anne
• Niamh — “bright, radiant” (Irish, pronounced “Neev”)
• Natalie — “born on Christmas Day” (Latin)

O

Boys:

• Oliver — “olive tree” (Latin) — #3 UK 2024
• Oscar — “God's spear” (Old English) — #9 UK 2024
• Owen — “young warrior” (Welsh)
• Otis — “wealth” (Germanic)
• Orion — Greek mythological hunter

Girls:

• Olivia — “olive tree” (Latin) — #1 UK 2024
• Ophelia — “help” (Greek)
• Orla — “golden princess” (Irish)
• Octavia — “eighth” (Latin)
• Odette — “wealthy” (Germanic)

P

Boys:

• Peter — “rock” (Greek)
• Patrick — “nobleman” (Latin)
• Paul — “small, humble” (Latin)
• Phoenix — mythological bird (Greek)
• Preston — “priest's town” (Old English)

Girls:

• Poppy — flower name — #8 UK 2024
• Penelope — “weaver” (Greek)
• Phoebe — “bright” (Greek)
• Pippa — short for Philippa, “lover of horses”
• Paige — “attendant” (Old French)

Q

Boys:

• Quentin — “fifth” (Latin)
• Quinn — “wise” (Irish)
• Quincy — “fifth son's estate” (Old French)

Girls:

• Quinn — “wise” (Irish, unisex)
• Queenie — from “queen” (Old English)

R

Boys:

• Ronnie — short for Ronald, “wise ruler”
• Roman — “from Rome” (Latin)
• Rory — “red king” (Irish)
• Reuben — “behold, a son” (Hebrew)
• Riley — “rye clearing” (Old English)

Girls:

• Rosie — short for Rose
• Ruby — gemstone name (Latin)
• Rosa — new UK top 100 in 2024
• Rose — flower name
• Romy — rising 2026, short for Rosemary

S

Boys:

• Samuel — “God has heard” (Hebrew)
• Sebastian — “venerable” (Greek/Latin)
• Sam — short for Samuel
• Stanley — “stony meadow” (Old English)
• Seth — “appointed” (Hebrew)

Girls:

• Sophia — “wisdom” (Greek)
• Sophie — French variant of Sophia
• Sienna — place name, rising 2026
• Scarlett — “red” (Old English)
• Stella — “star” (Latin)

T

Boys:

• Theodore — “gift of God” (Greek) — #8 UK 2024
• Thomas — “twin” (Hebrew/Aramaic)
• Teddy — short for Theodore/Edward
• Toby — short for Tobias, “God is good”
• Tristan — “tumult” (Welsh/French)

Girls:

• Tabitha — “gazelle” (Aramaic)
• Tilly — short for Matilda
• Thea — “goddess” (Greek)
• Tessa — short for Teresa, “harvester”
• Talia — “dew from God” (Hebrew)

U

Boys:

• Ulric — “wolf ruler” (Germanic)
• Ulysses — Greek hero (Latin form of Odysseus)

Girls:

• Una — “one” (Latin)
• Ursula — “little bear” (Latin)

U-names are rare in English tradition — consider these if you want something genuinely uncommon.

V

Boys:

• Vincent — “conquering” (Latin)
• Victor — “conqueror” (Latin)
• Vinnie — short for Vincent — new UK top 100 2024

Girls:

• Victoria — “victory” (Latin)
• Violet — flower name (Latin)
• Vera — “faith” (Russian/Latin)
• Verity — “truth” (Latin)
• Vivienne — “alive” (Latin)

W

Boys:

• William — “resolute protector” (Germanic)
• Wilfred — “desired peace” (Old English)
• Wesley — “western meadow” (Old English)
• Wyatt — “brave in war” (Old English)
• Winston — “joyful stone” (Old English)

Girls:

• Willow — tree name (Old English)
• Winnie — short for Winifred, “peace”
• Wren — bird name (Old English)
• Winter — season name (Old English)

X

Boys:

• Xavier — “bright, new house” (Basque)
• Xander — short for Alexander

Girls:

• Xena — “hospitable” (Greek)

X-names are extremely rare in English tradition — but Xavier has been steadily climbing in the UK since 2010.

Y

Boys:

• Yahya — “he will live” (Arabic) — new UK top 100 in 2024
• Yusuf — Arabic form of Joseph

Girls:

• Yara — “small butterfly” (Arabic/Brazilian)
• Yvonne — “yew tree” (French)

Z

Boys:

• Zachary — “the Lord has remembered” (Hebrew)
• Zayn — “beauty, grace” (Arabic)
• Zane — variant of John

Girls:

• Zoe — “life” (Greek) — new UK top 100 in 2024
• Zara — “blooming flower” (Arabic/Hebrew)
• Zelda — “grey battle” (Germanic)

How to Personalise a Baby Gift with the Name

Once the name is chosen, personalising a keepsake is genuinely lovely. A few practical tips:

1. Always get the spelling in writing from the family. Never guess — Sophie / Sofia / Sophia are all different, and families are particular.
2. Consider including the meaning underneath the name (e.g. “Isla — island”). Especially lovely for grandparents' gifts.
3. Include the birth date to future-proof the gift.
4. Match the item to the name length: shorter names (Ivy, Leo, Max) work on smaller items; longer names (Alexander, Genevieve, Christopher) need bigger keepsakes.

Perfect Baby Gifts for Any Name

• Personalised Baby Mug
• Wooden nursery signs
• Crystal photo blocks
• Slate keepsakes
• Ceramic fridge magnets
• Full baby shower gift range

Related Reading

• Popular baby names 2026 by culture (worldwide guide)
• Popular Pakistani baby names 2026 UK guide
• Popular Polish baby names 2026 UK guide
• Baby's first three years: every milestone & gift

Ordering a baby gift and unsure about a spelling? Email us at info@giftsvolt.co.uk and we'll send a proof before we print.

Sources: UK Office for National Statistics baby names data (2024 release, published December 2025); Behind the Name etymological dictionary; Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names. Rankings shown apply to England and Wales only.