by Abby Sandel

　　If you’re expecting a boy soon, you might be poring over the new most popular baby names stats for the US.

　　Plenty of great names have gone from under-the-radar to the next big thing. Shepherd, Gus, and Fox cracked the US Top 1,000. Wilder, Arlo, Kingsley, Hayes, and Grey all climbed more than 100 places in the rankings. Even classics like Henry, Frederick, and James gained in use.

　　What’s a parent to do? If you’re after a name that your son won’t share, you’ll have to look beyond today’s favorites to find possibilities that remain underused.

　　Luckily, there are plenty of options. Start with our list of fifty great boy names that are still unusual today.

　　Exactly how unusual? Every one of these names was given to fewer than 100 – and in some cases, many less – boys born in the US last year. It took 202 births for a name to make the Top 1,000 in 2016. These names don’t even make the Top 2,000. (The number following the name represents the actual births recorded last year, so there were just 32 Tennysons – and just eight Chords!)

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Unexpected Imports

　　Alexei, 34

　　Cavan, 44

　　Esben, 7

　　Fintan, 26

　　Macsen, 35

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Surname Names

　　Booker, 58

　　Collier, 47

　　Conway, 64

　　Copeland, 38

　　Dempsey, 71

　　Frasier, 6

　　Hutton, 18

　　Mercer, 43

　　Patton, 67

　　Prescott, 33

　　Tennyson, 32

　　Thayer, 44

　　Walton, 29

　　Whitaker, 47

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Word Names

　　Chord, 8

　　Hale, 20

　　Prosper, 18

　　Ranger, 69

　　Wolf, 67

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Vintage Gems

　　Cassian, 19

　　Esau, 48

　　Ferris, 47

　　Giles, 17

　　Grover, 17

　　Percy, 46

　　Roscoe, 63

　　Rufus, 35

　　Willis, 68

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Simply Unexpected

　　Macon, 32

　　Rhodes, 59

　　Rigel, 34

　　Vander, 54

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Short and Sweet

　　Ike, 54

　　Jed, 64

　　Keane, 27

　　Penn, 63

　　Riggs, 65

　　Teague, 45

　　Shaw, 33

　　Best Unusual Boy Names: Ending in O

　　Cosmo, 21

　　Galileo, 20

　　Gio, 50

　　Horatio, 16

　　Lando, 20

　　Winslow, 19

　　Would you consider any of these names? Do you think any of these will be the next big thing?