Boy names starting with U make for a very short list indeed!
The letter U comes dead last in terms of popularity. Just three boy names beginning with U rank in the current Top 1000, and only one of them makes the Top 500 – barely.
But there are others. Not many, but a handful of appealing possibilities come from the twenty-first letter of the alphabet.
It’s mostly English that neglects the letter. Some of these hint at international roots, and indeed, other languages make better use of the sound.
Some names, of course, could be spelled with an U instead of another vowel. Orson seems a little more accessible than Ursino. Alrich could just as easily be Ulrich.
But in most cases, it seems like the U version is the less popular of the possibilities.
And so this list of boy names starting with U may be brief, but it’s rich with some intriguing options.
Table of Contents
BOY NAMES STARTING WITH U
UCHENNA (unranked)
A unisex Igbo name with a powerful meaning: “wisdom of the father.”
UDAY (unranked)
A Sanskrit name meaning ascend, Uday makes a handsome choice.
UDI (unranked)
Familiar to many thanks to Udi’s Healthy Foods, the brand’s name comes from Udi Baron. Baron pioneered gluten-free baking in his Denver, Colorado cafes, and the business grew from there. Udi is most often a form of the Old Testament name Ehud.
UGO (unranked)
It’s best known as the Italian form of Hugh – meaning heart or mind – but Ugo also appears in Igbo as a name meaning eagle.
UMBERTO (unranked)
Italian form of Germanic name Humbert. Writer Umberto Eco makes it familiar in the US, though not often heard as a give name.
ULF (unranked)
Scandi form of wolf.
ULI AND ULLI (unranked)
It can be masculine or feminine and short for lots of longer names, including several German classics.
ULISES (#994)
The Spanish form of Ulysses, slightly sparer than the English version. This name has teetered on the edge of the US Top 1000 in recent years.
ULRICH (unranked)
A Germanic name rich with history, but seldom heard in the US.
ULYSSES (unranked)
Borrowed from a towering literary hero Ulysses, this name suggests an adventurous spirit. It’s also the only U name worn by a former American president, Ulysses S. Grant.
UMBERTO (unranked)
Humbert is pretty much extinct in English. But the Italian Umberto remains a dashing import.
UMI (unranked)
Feminine in Japanese, Umi is used in small numbers for girls in the US. But it’s also the name of a legendary Hawaiian king.
UPTON (unranked)
A polished surname name that means up town, it’s familiar thanks to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Upton Sinclair.
URBAN (unranked)
Eight popes have been named Urban, a brief and tailored choice that’s rare today, but not unknown.
URIAH (#702)
An Old Testament name meaning “God is my light,” Uriah benefits from our love of names like Elijah and Isaiah.
URIEL (#497)
Cousin to Uriah, Uriel currently stands as the most popular U name for a boy in the US.
URSINO (unranked)
In the key of Ugo and Umberto, this is another Italian U name. In this case, Ursino comes from the Latin ursus – bear. Orson is the closest English counterpart – but it’s nearly as rare.
USNAVI (unranked)
The Lin-Manuel Miranda musical In the Heights introduced us to Usnavi de la Vega. His name came from the boat his immigrant parents saw on their arrival to New York – US Navy. While the name has never appeared in US data, it has precedent in Cuban naming practices – which makes it a fit for Usnavi’s backstory.
What are your favorite boy names starting with U?
Ooh… I’d tread verrry carefully with Uday. It may be a lovely name, but for many people, it automatically conjures Saddam Hussein’s sadistic elder son.
my favorite U-names are : Ulderic, Ulas, Udolph, Urwan
Ulysses all day long. Love it.
I have to say, U isn’t my favourite letters for names. I do enjoy the sound of Uriel though, when pronounced the Hebrew way.