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Boy Names for Girls

Some of the coolest baby girl names are not girls' names at all but boys' names -- many of which have officially become unisex names. We're seeing more and more formerly 100% boy names being used for girls, from nicknames like Sam and Charlie (now 50-50 by gender!), to occupational or surnames such as Sawyer or McKinley to formerly masculine names such as Quincy and Jude that have become truly unisex.

Celebrity parents Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds broke the gender barrier in a new way when they named their daughter James. Many parents followed suit, sometimes using James as a middle name.

The trendy Arlo is one recently boy name that's moving to the girls' side. Australian actress Asher Keddie is proof that Asher might be a good alternative to the dated Ashley. Ezra and Noah are Biblical names that are increasingly being used for girls as well as boys. And in Israel, Daniel is a Top 100 name...for girls.

Some people think it's wrong to use boy names for girls unless the practice also works in the opposite direction. While statistics show that more parents are giving their sons unisex names, we are not seeing boys given decidedly feminine names in the same way that baby girls are being given formerly masculine names.

In case anyone thinks this is just another wacky name theory, statistics bear out that girls are being given all the names on this list in significant numbers. There were more than 50 baby girls in the US last year named Max and Maxwell, for instance, as well as Maverick, Landon, Chase, Auden, and Atlas.

Here, some boy names that can work for girls.

Winslow

Meaning: friend's hill or burial mound

Origin:English
2145
Lenny

Meaning: brave lion

Origin:Diminutive of Leonard, German
2432
Davis

Meaning: beloved

Origin:Surname derived from David, Hebrew
6796
Montgomery

Meaning: man power

Origin:Norman
7120
Murray

Meaning: from the land by the sea

Origin:Scottish
7268
Tanner

Meaning: leather tanner

Origin:English Surname
7313
Cruz

Meaning: cross

Origin:Spanish
7910
Crosby

Meaning: village with crosses

Origin:Irish
8117
Raiden

Meaning: thunder and lightning

Origin:Japanese
8234
Brogan

Meaning: small shoe

Origin:Irish
9325
Madden

Meaning: little dog

Origin:Irish
10068
Timothy

Meaning: honoring God

Origin:Greek
10169
Henri

Meaning: estate ruler

Origin:French from German
10354
Ryker

Meaning: rich

Origin:German
10472
Israel

Meaning: he who struggles with God

Origin:Hebrew
10705
Anh

Meaning: various meanings

Origin:Vietnamese
13140
Sterling

Meaning: of the highest quality

Origin:English
3538
Gene

Meaning: well born

Origin:Greek
4724
Raleigh

Meaning: meadow of deer

Origin:English
3346
Laurence

Meaning: from Laurentum

Origin:Latin
6349