125 of Today’s Dad Names

Many of the trendy baby names from the 1980s and 1990s have become the new dad names today. Those from the 80s and 90s belong to men between 20 and 40, making that prime fatherhood timing. It’s clear that not every popular name from those two decades have become dad names. Some names are evergreen and have always been popular in the US. We’re looking specifically at trendy names from those decades that have fallen from favor.

Dad names embody the warm relationships we have with our fathers and the hope we have for the newest generation of dads out there. They represent a generational shift that once was commonplace but has since faded into the background, enjoy these names for dads.

Dad Names That Start With A

• Aaron – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “high mountain”
• Adam – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “son of the red earth”
• Alberto – A name of Germanic origin, meaning “bright”
• Alec – A Scottish shortened form of Alexander, meaning “defending men”
• Alvaro – A name of Spanish origin, meaning “elf warrior”

More Dad Names That Start With A

• Andrew – A name of Greek origin, meaning “strong and manly”
• Antoine – A French form of Anthony, meaning “priceless one”
• Armando – A Latinate form of the German name Herman, meaning “soldier”
• Arturo – A Latinate form of the Celtic name Arthur, meaning “bear”
• Austin – An English, short form of Augustine, meaning “magnificent”

Dad Names That Start With B

• Bernardo – A Latinate name, meaning “strong as a bear”
• Bill – An English, short form of William, meaning “resolute protector”
• Brandon – An English name, meaning “broom-covered hill”
• Brenton – A name meaning “a town near the burnt land”
• Brett– A Celtic name, meaning “of Brittany”

Dad Names That Start With C

• Carlos – A Latinate form of the French name, Charles, meaning “free man”
• Casey – A unisex name of Irish origin, meaning “brave in battle”
• Chance – A name of French origin, related to Chauncey
• Chandler – A French occupational name for a “candle maker”
• Chaz – A diminutive form of Charles, meaning “free man”

More Dad Names That Start With C

• Christopher – A name of Greek origin, meaning “bearer of Christ”
• Clayton – An English name, meaning “place with good clay”
• Clint – A diminutive form of Clinton, meaning “a town near a cliff”
• Cody – A unisex name of English origin, meaning “pillow” or “helpful”
• Cory – A name of Irish origin, meaning “of the hallow”

Dad Names That Start With D

• Dakota – A Native American tribe and place name; Sioux, meaning “friendly one”
• Dallas – An Irish name and placename, meaning “skilled”
• Dalton – A name of English origin, meaning “valley settlement”
• Dangelo – A name of Latinate origin, meaning “of Angels”
• Daniel – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “God is my judge”

More Dad Names That Start With D

• Dante – A Latin form of Durant, meaning “enduring”
• Dario – An Italian form of Darius, meaning “possessing goodness”
• Darnell – A name of English origin, meaning “the hidden spot”
• Dawson – A name of Welsh origin, meaning “son of David”
• Demarco – A Latinate name meaning “of Mars”

Dad Names That Start With E

• Edgardo – An English form of Edgar, meaning “wealthy spearman”
• Efrain – A Spanish form of Ephraim, from Hebrew, meaning “fruitful”
• Erik – A name of Norse origin, meaning “eternal ruler”
• Ernesto – An Italian and Spanish form of Ernest, meaning “serious”
• Estevan – A Latinate form of Stephen, meaning “bay laurel”

Dad Names That Start With F

• Felipe – A Spanish form of Philip, from Greek, meaning “lover of horses”
• Fernando – A Latinate form of Ferdinand, meaning “bold voyager”
• Frances – A name of French origin, meaning “free man”
• Francisco – Another form of Frances
• Frederick – A name of German origin that means “peaceful ruler”

Dad Names That Start With G

• Garrison – A name of English origin, meaning “son of Garrett”
• Geoffrey – An English name from French, meaning “pledge of peace”
• Gerardo – A Spanish form of Gerard, meaning “spear strength”
• German – A form of Herman, meaning “warrior”
• Gilberto – A name of German origin, meaning “shining pledge”

Dad Names That Start With H

• Herbert – A name of German origin, meaning “bright army”
• Heriberto – Another form of Herbert
• Herman – A name of German and English origin, meaning “soldier”
• Hernan – A Spanish name related to Hernando, meaning “adventurer”
• Humberto – A name from German, meaning “renowned warrior”

Dad Names That Start With J

• Jaime – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “supplanter”
• Jaleel – A name of Arabic origin, meaning “noble”
• Jamal – Another Arabic name, meaning “beauty”
• Jamarcus – An invented name
• Jared – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “he descends”

More Dad Names That Start With J

• Jarrell – A German form of Gerald, meaning “ruler with a spear”
• Jarrett – A name meaning “spear strength”
• Javier – A Spanish form of Xavier, meaning “new house” and “bright”
• Jerod – A form of Jarrett
• Jonathan – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “gift of Jehovah”

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Dad Names That Start With K

• Kalvin – A name of Latin origin, meaning “bald”
• Keanu – A name of Hawaiian origin, meaning “cool breeze over the mountain”
• Keenan – An Irish name, meaning “ancient”
• Kegan – An Irish name, meaning “son of Egan”
• Kelby – A name of English origin, meaning “dweller at the farm by the stream”

More Dad Names Starting With K

• Kelsey – An English surname-name, meaning “Cenel’s island”
• Kendall – A unisex English name, meaning “valley of the River Kent”
• Khalil – A name of Arabic origin, meaning “friend”
• Kwame – A Ghanaian, Akan name, meaning “born on Saturday”
• Kyle – A name of Scottish origin, meaning “narrow strip of land”

Dad Names That Start With L

• Ladarius – An invented name
• Lamar – An English name from French, meaning “dweller by the pool”
• Laquan – An invented name
• Latrell – A name meaning “eager”
• Lazaro – An Italian form of a Hebrew name, meaning “God is my helper”

Dad Names That Start With M

• Mackenzie – A name of Scottish origin, meaning “son of Kenzie”
• Marcus – A name of Latin origin, meaning “warlike”
• Mitchell – A variant of Michael, meaning “who is like God?”
• Montana – A Spanish place-name, meaning “mountainous”
• Morgan – A unisex name of Welsh origin, meaning “sea-born” or “sea-circle.”

Dad Names That Start With N

• Nathanial – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “gift of God”
• Nestor – A name of Greek origin, meaning “traveler”
• Nicholas – A name of Greek origin, meaning “people of victory”
• Nigel – A name of Irish origin, meaning “dark” or “black hair”
• Nikko – A diminutive form of Nicholas

Dad Names That Start With R

• Raheem – A form of Rahim, from Arabic, meaning “merciful”
• Rakeem – A popular name from Muslim tradition
• Ramiro – A name of Portuguese origin, meaning “great judge”
• Ramsey – A name of English origin, meaning “low-lying land”
• Raphael – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “God has healed”

More Dad Names Starting With R

• Raul – A Spanish form of Ralph, meaning “wolf counsel”
• Ricardo – A Latinate form of Richard, meaning “dominant ruler”
• Ronaldo – A name originating in German, meaning “powerful counsel”
• Ruben – A name of Hebrew origin that means “behold, a son”
• Ryan – A unisex name of Irish origin, meaning “little king”

Dad Names Starting With S

• Salvador – A Spanish name from Latin, meaning “salvation”
• Sam – A diminutive form of Samuel, from Hebrew, meaning “told by God”
• Sean – An Irish variation of John, meaning “God is gracious”
• Sergio – An Italian and Spanish form of the Latin name Sergius
• Shaun – A spelling variation of Sean

More Dad Names Starting With S

• Shea – An Irish unisex name, meaning “the stately, dauntless one”
• Skyler – A spelling variant of Schuyler, from Dutch, meaning “scholar”
• Spencer – AN English occupational name, meaning “house steward”
• Stefan – A variant form of Stephen popular across Europe, from Greek, meaning “garland”
• Stone – A mineral English surname-name

Dad Names That Start With T

• Tanner – An English occupational name for a “leather tanner”
• Tariq – A name of Arabic origin, meaning “one who knocks at the door”
• Taylor – An occupational name for a “tailor”
• Terrell – A name of English origin, a surname, meaning “to pull”
• Tevin – A modern, invented name that most likely means “twin”

More Dad Names That Start With T

• Travis – A French occupational name, meaning “tollgate keeper”
• Trayvon – A name of English origin, meaning “from a fair town”
• Trevor – A name of Welsh origin, meaning “from the large village”
• Trey – A name of English origin, meaning “three”
• Tyler – An English occupational name, meaning “maker of tiles”

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Final Dad Names

• Vicente – A Spanish form of Vincent, meaning “conquering”
• Whitney – A name of English origin, meaning “white’s island”
• William – A name of English and German origin, meaning “resolute protection”
• Zachary – A name of Hebrew origin, meaning “the Lord has remembered”
• Zane – A potential variant of John, meaning “God is gracious” or Arabic, meaning “beauty”

There you go! We hope you enjoyed these dad names. These appellations might have been very trendy in the 1980s and 1990s but they have fallen from favor these days. You may want to bring one of these vintage finds for a baby boy born today, and we wish you the best with it.