by Pamela Redmond Satran
There’s a new class of boys’ names trending today that has a short clipped sound, contains only one syllable, is undeniably masculine yet not traditionally so. Many of these boys’ names barely existed a generation or two ago: They’re definitely not your father’s or grandfather’s baby names.
But in some ways, they are the heirs to names like Glenn and Craig and Sean that took over in the 1960s and 70s from the traditional Bills and Toms. They seek to reinvent masculinity while preserving qualities like strength and energy.
There are names with more conventional roots that you might consider part of this new brigade of short boys’ names: I’m thinking of such popular, stylish choices as Finn and Jack, Max and Jude.
But I’d like to focus today on those boys’ names that are newer and, some may say, fresher than Jack or Jude. In 1970, most of these boys’ names barely squeaked onto the Social Security extended list, given to only a handful of baby boys. Today, most are on the Top 1000, many of them moving up quickly.
The new boys’ names on the block include:
[column1]
Ace
Ash
Blaine
Bo
Brock
Cade
Cash
Clay
Cole
Colt
Cru
Dax
Gage
Gray
Jace
Jax
Kane
[/column1]
[column2]
Kase
King
Knox
Lane
Nash
Pax
Reed
Rhys
Sage
Tate
Trace
Trent
Trey
Trip
Wade
West
Zane
[/column2]
What do you think of this kind of new boys’ names? Did you or would you give one to your son? Why or why not?