Are you expecting a child and looking for preppy baby names? Then you’ve come to the right place. We’ve gathered the best preppy names for girls and boys below. These names draw inspiration from traditional, upper-class institutions like the American presidency, Ivy League and English universities, English surnames, and British royalty.
My youngest daughter’s name, Charlotte Elizabeth, made this list of preppy baby names, presumably because it is also the name of Prince William and Duchess Kate’s only daughter. My mother’s maiden name, Benton, also made the list. Most of these classic, conservative baby names are English, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Irish, Latin, Scottish, or Welsh.
This is our list of the best preppy names!
Preppy Baby Names
Preppy Girl Names
Literary enthusiast? You might like Madeline, of Madeline namesake character fame, which means “high tower or woman from Magdala;” Schuyler, of the Schuyler sisters historical and Alexander Hamilton (and musical Hamilton) fame, which means “scholar;” or Scout, of To Kill a Mockingbird main character fame, which means “first explorer.”
Music lover? You might consider Harper, which means “harp player,” or Piper, which means “pipe or flute player.”
Outdoor enthusiast? Try Blair, which means “dweller on the plain;” Brooke, which means “small stream;” Brynn, which means “hill;” Bryony, which means “to sprout;” Calloway, which means “pebbly place:” Cricket, which means “loud insect of the night;” Hadley, which means “heather field;” Hollis or Hollister, which both mean “dweller at the holly trees;” Laura, which means “bay laurel;” Marlowe, which means “driftwood;” or Tabitha, which means “gazelle.”
Religious? You might like Elizabeth, which means “pledged to God,” or Jane, which means “God is gracious.”
Want a name befitting a female warrior? Consider Delaney, which means “dark challenger;” Edith, which means “prosperous in war;” Sloane, which means “raider;” or Victoria, which means “victory.”
Or you might like Meredith, which means “great ruler.”
Best Preppy Girl Names
Addison
Arden
Arlen
Aubrey
Avery
Barrett
Beatrice
Beth
Blair
Briar
Brighton
Brooke
Brynn
Bryony
Buffy
Calloway
Camilla
Campbell
Caroline
Carrington
Cassidy
Cecily
Charlotte
Claiborne
Claire
Clara
Clarke
Colby
Collins
Courtney
Cricket
Darby
Delancey
Delaney
Diana
Edith
Eleanor or Elle
Elizabeth
Ellington
Ellis
Ellison
Emma
Emmeline
Fifer
Frances
Grace
Greeley
Greer
Gwendolyn
Gwyneth
Hadley
Harper
Hathaway
Hollis or Hollister
Hollyn
Isla
Jane
Jentry
Kate or Katherine
Kendall
Kennedy
Kensington
Kerry
Lachlan
Larkin
Laura
Laurel
Leighton
Madeline
Margaret
Marlowe
Martha
Mccarthy
Meredith
Merrill
Millie or Milly
Missy
Padget
Paige
Palmer
Parker
Payton
Piper
Pippa
Poppy
Quinn
Reagan
Reese
Schuyler
Scout
Sheridan
Skipper
Sloane
Sutton
Tabitha
Tandy
Tate or Tatum
Taylor
Teagan
Tierney
Tilly
Tinsley
Vaughn
Victoria
Wallis
Waverly
Whitley
Whitney
Windsor
Yardley
Preppy Boy Names
Beatles fan? You might consider Harrison, of the Beatles’ lead guitarist George Harrison fame, which means “son of Harry.”
Texas country music enthusiast? You might like Jennings, of singer-songwriter Waylon and son Shooter Jennings fame, which means “little John,” or Jones, of singer-songwriter George Jones fame, which means “God is gracious.”
Literary buff? You might like Faulkner, of American writer William Faulkner fame, which means “falconer;” Fitzgerald, of American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald fame, which means “son of Gerald;” Keats, of English poet John Keats, which means “kite;” Langston, of American poet Langston Hughes fame, which means “tall man’s town;” Montgomery, of Canadian author L.M. Montgomery fame, which means “manpower;” or Yates, of American novelist Richard Yates fame, which means “gate.”
Outdoor enthusiast? You might like Arden, which means “valley of the eagle;” Banks, which means “one who lives on the hillside or riverbank;” Beaumont, which means “beautiful mountain;” Brooks, which means “of the brook;” Camden, which means “winding valley;” Ford, which means “dweller at the ford;” Forrest, which means “dweller near the woods;” or George, which means “farmer.” You might also like Hart, which means “stag;” Hartford, which means “deer ford;” Hawkins, which means “hawk;” Hayes, which means “hedged area;” Holden, which means “hollow valley;” Hoyt, which means “long stick;” Hunter, which means “one who hunts;” Knox, which means “round hill;” Remington, which means “place on a riverbank;” Rhodes, which means “where roses grow;” Shepherd, which means “sheepherder;” or Wesley, which means “western meadow.”
Religious? Try Elliott, which means “Jehovah is God;” Jack, which means “God is gracious;” Tad, Thad, or Thaddeus, which all mean “gift of God;” or Topher, which means “bearer of Christ.”
Want a name befitting a warrior? Consider Alistair, which means “defending men;” Duncan, which means “dark warrior;” Fletcher, which means “arrow-maker;” Louis, which means “renowned warrior;” Miles, which means “soldier or merciful;” Nicholas, which means “people of victory;” or William, which means “resolute protection.”
Or you might like Frederick, which means “peaceful ruler,” or Richard, which means “dominant ruler.”
Best Preppy Boy Names
Adrian
Alden
Alistair
Ames
Aston
Augustine
Banks
Barclay
Bates
Beau or Beaumont
Bennett
Benton
Blaine
Booth
Bridger
Bronson
Brooks
Bryant
Buchanan
Cabot
Caldwell
Camden
Carlisle
Carlton
Chet
Chip
Clinton
Conrad
Cooper
Crawford
Crosby
Dalton
Dashiell
Davis
Dean
Desmond
Dorian
Drexel
Duncan
Elliott
Elton
Emerson
Emmett
Emory
Ewing
Fairbanks
Faulkner
Ferris
Fielder
Fitzgerald
Fletcher
Flynn
Forbes
Ford
Forrest
Francis
Frederick
George
Giles
Graham
Grant
Greer
Gregory
Haines
Hale
Hamilton
Hammond
Harding
Harris or Harrison
Hart or Hartford
Hawkins
Hayes
Henry
Holden
Hoyt
Hudson
Hugh
Hunter
Hutchinson
Ingram
Ives
Jack
James or Jameson
Jennings
Jones
Keaton
Keats
Kellen
Kelly
Kiefer
Kimball
Kip
Knox
Langston
Latham
Laughlin
Lawson
Louis
Mac or Macallister
Malcolm
Maxfield
Mercer
Merritt
Miles
Montgomery
Murphy
Nicholas
Niels
Oakes
Oxford
Parker
Phillip or Phillips
Pierce
Powell
Prescott
Preston
Princeton
Quade
Quentin
Quincy
Radley
Rawlings
Reeve
Reid
Remington
Rhett
Rhodes
Rhys
Richard
Rivers
Royce
Rush
Rutherford
Sargent
Saxon
Sayer
Sebastian
Sheffield
Shepherd
Sinclair
Smith
Stanton
Spencer
Sumner
Tad, Thad, or Thaddeus
Taggart
Tanner
Teague
Thatcher
Thayer
Thornton
Tiernan
Topher
Trey
Tucker
Warner
Wesley
Wharton
Wilder
William
Worth
Wright
Yale
Yates
York
We hope you found some inspiration with these preppy baby names!
Are you looking for more baby names? For inspiration, try German baby names, Greek baby names, Hebrew baby names, or Irish baby names. (You’ll recognize a few preppy names like Charlotte, Katherine, Margaret, Teagan, Emmett, Richard, Sebastian, and William on these lists.)