If you want to be the best parent ever, give your kid a short name. Why not? Because seriously, would you rather write “Abe” or “Abraham” several times a day — when you’re a second-grader whose cute pudgy little hand is already worn out from all those spelling words and math worksheets? Plus, short names are much easier to fit onto all those personalized tees. What? You don’t think of these things before your baby is even born yet?
Classrooms and T-shirts aside, short baby names can make just as big an impact as longer ones. Especially when it’s cool and quirky, a quick-to-say first name can add leeway for more middle names or offset a hard-to-pronounce last name perfectly.
Check out these short — and oh so sweet — baby boy names.
Short biblical names
Whether you see the Bible as the word of God, a historical text or an entertaining piece of fiction, there’s no denying it can be a great source of baby names. Probably not what its numerous contributors originally intended, but hey — we’ll take inspiration wherever we can get it. There are, of course, a lot of people in the Bible, and plenty of them have short and meaningful names.
Short contemporary names
Short names (particularly those with only one syllable) already sound sharp and modern, and these options have plenty of edge. Proof that short doesn’t have to mean dull!
- Ace
- Alfie
- Axel
- Beck
- Bern
- Blair
- Blake
- Cash
- Chip
- Coe
- Dex
- Finn
- Fox
- Hale
- Hank
- Jan
- Jay
- Kane
- Knox
- Laird
- Lars
- Max
- Mills
- Milo
- Parr
- Penn
- Reid
- Rex
- Taft
- Van
- Zane
Short versions of longer names
If there’s a long baby boy name you love, but you’re pairing it with a last name that’s a bit of a mouthful, why not go for an abbreviation? It’s also a lovely way to pay tribute to Grandpa Augustus or Great Uncle Zachariah, but using far fewer letters. These short versions of longer names are all great baby names in their own right. And if you want to give your kid options when they’re older, you could use the long name on their birth certificate, but announce (and use) the short name. That means Leo can use Leonardo in law school if he feels like getting fancy.
- Abe (Abraham)
- Alex (Alexander)
- Ben (Benjamin)
- Drew (Andrew)
- Enzo (Lorenzo)
- Gunn (Gunther)
- Gus (Augustus)
- Ike (Isaac)
- Jay (James)
- Joe (Joseph)
- Leo (Leonardo)
- Liam (William)
- Mike (Michael)
- Nate (Nathaniel)
- Rob (Robert)
- Sam (Samuel)
- Tim (Timothy)
- Tom (Thomas)
- Will (William)
- Zac (Zachary)
If you’re a no-fuss, straight-to-the-point kind of parent who doesn’t want to try too hard (in which case, we applaud you), a short baby name is the perfect choice — and the options are practically endless.
Image: Getty Images/Design:Ashley Britton/SheKnows
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