Choosing a baby name is one of the most high-pressure tasks every new parent faces: Whether mom or dad is looking for something unique (but not too unique) or trendy (but not too trendy), it can be tough to strike a balance. What's an expecting couple to do? Well, we've got everyone covered. It's easy to check out the most popular names from the past few years, but what about the least popular? Many have heard of some outrageous baby names, such as Pilot Inspektor or North West. But we promise these picks are closer to Chandra and Nat – different, but not too different. It'll give a little one the space to shine without putting them in a lifetime compromising position. And yes, they're all perfect for the playground right now, too.
For parents who don't want a bunch of kids in class to have the same name as their kiddo, coming up with the a unique moniker can feel like major pressure. But baby naming experts from Nameberry recently compiled a list of names that no parents are using at all – and we mean it. Not one single child in the US was given any of these names – at least not back in 2016. Not a one! That totally gives parents free reign to claim a name for their baby no one else is likely to have. Parents-to-be looking for a little something special in their baby name search should check out these picks from the list of most-maligned monikers today that could deserve a little more respect (or not!).
TRAVELER
Traveller or Traveler is a gender neutral name and literally means someone who loves to travel. While this isn't a hobby most babies are really into, it's popular among the adult-crowd, unlike this name.
OTTOLINE
The name is typically for a little girl and means "prospers in battle," a strong name meaning that one would think is popular for that reason alone. However, the fact it's not terribly feminine-sounding could be one reason it's not popular.
FALCONER
The name is English in origin and translates to mean the person who trains falcons. Not only is this an outdated, likely dead name, but the job title is rare these days, too.
BEACH
Sounds like a great vacation destination, but not the best name for a child and that's why it's an unused, abandoned name. There are plenty of location-based names that are in regular rotation, but this isn't one of them.
VALERIAN
Valerian is typically a boy's name and since it means "healing" or "strength" it's surprising that it's not more popular than it is. It does have a very old-time feel to it and chances are it's not going to be resurrected into today's time.
CALICO
It's a cat, and Calico should stay a word that we use to describe a certain type of cat. Unless a child has an interesting hair color, it's a strong suggestion this name stays for the felines.
SEASON
We know the word, but there are some people out there with this as their name. We've seen names like Winter, Summer, and Autumn, those work, but we are not sold yet on the name Season.
SHEHERAZADE
There are many names that are rooted into literature or other pop culture references. The name Sheherazade comes from the same book of stories as Aladdin and unlike Jasmine, this name is likely to stay in the unused category for some time.
NEPHELE
It sounds more like a name for a kidney and less like a name given to a child, but it's at least unique. The name originates in Greek Mythology and there's a strong feeling the name is going to stay in that realm.
ORRICK
It's hard to find a good name that starts with the letter O and it doesn't sound like we're going to find it here, either. Orrick is an older-school name that we don't hear often anymore and chances are it's never going to be one we hear often.
WOLFGANG
It's a pretty strong name and one that would bed assumed to be for a really tough guy – at least back in the day. Now, Wolfgang is nearly exclusively for the older crowd and not one heard when calling a baby.
CHRISTMAS
We love the holiday but don't like the name for a real person. It's a day that should be celebrated, and some parents have given their child this name, but it needs to be abandoned. And it needs to stay that way.
SALMON
Yes, it's a fish. One we eat, but it was also used as a name for a person, and thankfully it's been abandoned since. It hasn't been on a popular baby name list yet, and likely won't see it top one, or even get near the list at all.
FIFER
Fifer means someone who plays a fife. What's a fife? It's kind of like a flute, which is very much like an abandoned instrument. Chances are we won't see either of these revive in the near future. We're OK with that.
DANCER
Another name that sounds more like a job title and will be abandoned as a name option. There are some cute nicknames that can be pulled from this name (like Danny), but parents are aware of the future and finding a job with this name could be a challenge.
RANCHER
We know that back in the day names used to be designed to show the job position that someone had. It's usually the last name that is influenced here, but if someone really wants their child to grow up to be in farming, maybe Rancher then has to come out of the vault.
WYSTAN
There are a lot of different ways to spell names and some like to get more creative than others. This name, which can also be spelled Weston, is one that is not likely to come out of the abandoned category. It's challenging to know how to pronounce it at first glance and somethings need to stay the same.
MARIABELLA
There are beautiful names that can be created when combining two smaller names, For instance combining names like Maria and Bella, will create Mariabella. There is no question that this is a beautiful name, but with it not being on any popular list, there's a real chance this is forgotten and abandoned.
EASTER
OK, taking a look at just the name itself, without adding in the holiday context, the meaning of "spring" or "goddess of fertility" could be great backgrounds for a name choice. This one is off the table and forever unusable due to the holiday.
HUMPHREY
Apparently there weren't a lot of Bogart fans naming babies in 2016 because Humphrey was not a popular choice – even though it has a pretty cool meaning ("peaceful warrior"). The name hasn't been popular and likely won't ever become so.
CIRCE
From Greek mythology, the goddess Circe had some pretty cool powers — such as the ability to transform people into animals! (Guess that would actually be a pretty scary trick for a baby to play.) The number one question with this name, though, is how to pronounce it.
LUDOVIC
Derived from the French and old German Louis, Ludovic means "illustrious fighter" – but that's a bit of trivia someone probably never needs to know because nobody's naming their babies Ludovic anymore, according to Nameberry.
DIABLO
Maybe the reason why we don't hear Diablo too much is because it means "devil" in Spanish? (Even though, let's face it – all babies act like little devils from time to time!) Either way, it's still a cute name that shouldn't be totally off the table just because of a bad connection
PLACIDO
It was a successful moniker for the "King of Opera" Placido Domingo, but the Italian form of the Late Latin name Placidus (meaning "peaceful, calm") doesn't get much love these days – at least not in the US.
CHANDRA
A Sanskrit name meaning "illustrious, eminent," Chandra enjoyed a brief period of slight popularity in the 1970s but seemingly went out of style with bell bottoms and pet rocks. We hear this name once in a while but likely won't ever see it come out of abandoned-status.
NAT
Short for Nathaniel ("gift of God"), we think Nat is actually pretty cute … but apparently we're in the minority. (Although maybe some families are using it as a nickname.) This name can also be used as a nickname for Natalie, a cute name for a little girl.
PERDITA
We secretly like this one because Perdita was the name of the mother dog in 101 Dalmatians, but maybe the meaning – "lost" – is a put-off for some parents? It's an unusual name but that meaning is definitely going to put people off their list.
BARD
Usually a surname, Bard has a romantic, poetic sort of connotation … but alas, romance must be dead because no one is choosing this for their name. It's a good option if a short name for a babe-to-be is important.
THADDEA
The female form of Thaddeus, Thaddea has never ranked among the top 1,000 names in the US. (Um, no surprise there.) It likely won't ever rank either because it's male-form has never been a popular name choice either.
PUCK
Maybe nobody reads Shakespeare anymore or maybe Puck from MTV's The Real World (remember him?) really turned everybody off to the name – maybe both? We heard the name on the Fox Show Glee but it sounds more like a nickname or last name than a given name.
FRANNY
Old-fashioned Franny (think Salinger's Franny and Zooey) just isn't up to modern-day moms' standards. It's a nickname for Frances, which we don't hear too terribly often either. However, both are not the worst names ever and they're ones that could still be runners in the name game.
SPIKE
Despite the fact that notable movie directors Spike Lee and Spike Jonze have this name (not to mention Snoopy's cousin), not too many boy babies are getting this one on their birth certificate. This name sounds cool, but it's not on any popular baby name list.
HESTER
All the rage back in the 1880s, Hester won't be showing up on any personalized backpacks anytime soon. It's really old-school and probably too old-school for anyone to revive. Maybe The Scarlet Letter had something to do with this drop in popularity?
GULLIVER
One could think that maybe someone would want to name their son Gulliver to inspire a lifelong love of travel, but … nope. This name is more old-school and rarely ever heard now, and according to statistics, it's not on the most popular list or any popular list in the US.
NORTH
Despite the millions of Kim Kardashian fans walking the planet, North is not a name non-celebs have much interest in using. (Maybe it only works with a last name like West.) It's also not ranked in the popularity charts, but maybe it will surge at some point.
KERMIT
Sure, it's a frog's name, but Kermit is also a form of the Irish Gaelic Diarmaid ("without injunction, a freeman"). Guess the frog part is a deal-breaker for most parents and we can't blame them. Parents worry about how kids will be treated at school and knowing kids won't let this name go, it's no surprise it's forgotten and unused.
WINSOME
"You win some, you lose some" … but Winsome hasn't won any baby name popularity contests in recent years. (Or any years, to be fair.) It's probably not too popular because there's some question here on how to pronounce the name, but a nickname of Winny could be cute.
MINGUS
Considering the fact that Norman Reedus and Helena Christensen have a son named Mingus, it's surprising that more Walking Dead fans didn't steal this idea – but not even Daryl Dixon can sell this one. It doesn't even sound good rolling off the tongue, because it doesn't roll, it' falls flat.
ZEPHYRINE
Cool names that start with the letter "Z" are hard to come by, but even that lack of options isn't enough to make parents choose Zephyrine. It's a really pretty name but there needs to be a huge personality behind it for anyone to pull off such a big name.
BRITANNIA
The first second looking at this name and an image of an encyclopedia likely comes to mind, even though it's not the exact same name. Britannia has never been terribly popular of a name and likely won't see the light of any best-name lists.
