boy names ending with RBoy names ending in R cover all the styles. Archer and Asher were both among the fastest rising boy names last year, along with classic Theodore. Plenty of favorites, like Carter and Hunter, feel downright traditional these days. Others, like Alexander, earned that title long ago.

Of course, boy names ending in R have plenty of competition these days. Boy names ending in S feel terribly fashionable, with Brooks leading the way. And vowel endings, like A and O, feel fresher than ever.

The first version of this list, complied in 2016, tallied 78 boy names ending in R from the current US Top 1000.

That number has shifted just a bit. In calendar year 2019, a grand total of 85 made the list – an increase of six from the original version. And in 2020, that number ticked up to 91. Almost ten percent of the boys’ names appearing in the current US Top 1000 end with the letter R.

BOY NAMES ENDING IN R: THE LIST

  1. OLIVER (#3)
  2. ALEXANDER (#10)
  3. THEODORE (#23)
  4. ASHER (#32)
  5. CARTER (#33)
  6. CHRISTOPHER (#47)
  7. HUNTER (#69)
  8. COOPER (#74)
  9. CONNOR (#78)
  10. XAVIER (#92)
  11. PARKER (#95)
  12. RYDER (#108)
  13. SAWYER (#116)
  14. AMIR (#117)
  15. RIVER (#129)
  16. TYLER (#130)
  17. JASPER (#138)
  18. RYKER (#148)
  19. ARCHER (#160)
  20. KARTER (#161)
  21. XANDER (#187)
  22. ARTHUR (#162)
  23. VICTOR (#200)
  24. WALKER (#206)
  25. TUCKER (#192)
  26. PETER (#214)
  27. OSCAR (#215)
  28. KYLER (#244)
  29. JAVIER (#249)
  30. OMAR (#253)
  31. WALTER (#274)
  32. ZANDER (#280)
  33. GUNNER (#308)
  34. SPENCER (#316)
  35. TANNER (#333)
  36. MAJOR (#352)
  37. NASIR (#359)
  38. HECTOR (#364)
  39. CESAR (#371)
  40. IKER (#380)
  41. EDGAR (#393)
  42. PORTER (#423)
  43. WILDER (#431)
  44. CONNER (#439)
  45. TREVOR (#407)
  46. ZYAIRE (#447)
  47. BAYLOR (#460)
  48. ZAIRE (#522)
  49. BAKER (#524)
  50. DENVER (#527)
  51. GUNNAR (#528)
  52. DEXTER (#560)
  53. SKYLER (#566)
  54. TAYLOR (#597)
  55. LEDGER (#626)
  56. ANDER (#628)
  57. SAMIR (#647)
  58. EMIR (#650)
  59. FLETCHER (#654)
  60. JAMIR (#663)
  61. ROGER (#679)
  62. MILLER (#696)
  63. SALVADOR (#698)
  64. JAGGER (#718)
  65. JUNIOR (#748)
  66. BRIAR (#755)
  67. KRISTOPHER (#827)
  68. AMEER (#830)
  69. THATCHER (#839)
  70. KABIR (#859)
  71. DIOR (#868)
  72. KAISER (#869)
  73. YAHIR (#880)
  74. ZAVIER (#881)
  75. ZAHIR (#889)
  76. BEAR (#897)
  77. JAIR (#899)
  78. FISHER (#908)
  79. ADLER (#920)
  80. BRIDGER (#925)
  81. AHMIR (#935)
  82. DAMIR (#948)
  83. SALVATORE (#954)
  84. ALISTAIR (#963)
  85. FOSTER (#965)
  86. ZYAIR (#968)
  87. ABNER (#971)
  88. COLTER (#972)
  89. ELIEZER (#993)
  90. XZAVIER (#975)
  91. TURNER (#997)

TRADITIONAL FAVORITES ENDING WITH R

Many traditional names appear on the list of boy names ending in R, including Alexander and Christopher, but also fast-rising Oliver, comebacks like Arthur, and not-quite-rediscovered possibilities, like Walter and Peter.

ANTIQUE BOY NAMES ENDING IN R

Boy names tend to be slightly less subject to trends, so it’s no surprise that antique choices like Edgar, Dexter, and Roger remain in the US Top 1000. They’ve fallen dramatically from their heights, but they remain in steady use – and could easily make a comeback.

ESTABLISHED SURNAME NAMES ENDING WITH R

Carter, Cooper, Hunter, Sawyer, and Parker have become go-to names for boys.

Others, like Tucker and Tanner, belong to the same category, but have fallen in use.

And a few more and up-and-comers, like Wilder, Bridger, and Ledger.

ALMOST SURNAMES ENDING WITH R

Ryder and Ryker do occur as surnames. Others, like Kyler? Maybe not so much.

RESPELLINGS WITH R ENDINGS

Swap out the C for a K and you’ll find Karter and Kristopher. Playing with Scrabble tiles transforms Xavier into Zavier, Xzavier, and adds an extra letter to Alexzander.

IMPORTS ENDING WITH R

Plenty of names count as traditional elsewhere. But in the US? They’re imports. Think Omar, Amir, and Iker; Javier, Salvador, and Cesar; Nasir, Yahir, and Samir.

WORD NAMES ENDING WITH R

Then come the word names: Jasper boasts centuries of use. Major has more history than you might guess. Junior finds favor elsewhere in the English-speaking world, notably South Africa. Meanwhile River surged from a seldom-heard hippie pick to a mainstream favorite.

RARE BOY NAMES ENDING WITH R

Love the sound of these names, but looking for something less popular? These cover all of the same categories as the more familiar choices – surnames and word names and imports, too. Some are super-wearable … others, not so much!

But they were all given to fewer than 200 boys born in the calendar year 2020.

  1. ADAIR
  2. ALDER
  3. AMADOR
  4. AMOR
  5. ARBOR
  6. AVENIR
  7. AVIGDOR
  8. AZAR
  9. AZURE
  10. BADER
  11. BALTHAZAR
  12. BANNER
  13. BECKER
  14. BEHR
  15. BOOKER
  16. BRENNER
  17. BREWER
  18. BRYER
  19. CALDER
  20. CALIBER
  21. CARDER (and KARDER)
  22. CARTIER (and KARTIER)
  23. CARVER
  24. CASPER
  25. CHESTER
  26. COPPER
  27. CZAR
  28. DECKER (and DEKKER)
  29. DRAXLER
  30. EDER
  31. EIDER
  32. EINAR
  33. ELDER
  34. ELIER
  35. ELMER
  36. ENDER
  37. EVANDER
  38. FRAZIER (and FRASIER and FRASER)
  39. GASPAR
  40. GREER
  41. GROVER
  42. GUNTHER
  43. HATCHER
  44. HOMER
  45. HONOR
  46. ISADORE
  47. IVAR
  48. JAMAR
  49. JASIR
  50. JETER
  51. JOYNER
  52. JUPITER
  53. KASHMIR
  54. KESSLER
  55. KYAIRE
  56. LAKER
  57. LAMAR
  58. LANDER
  59. LEANDER
  60. LESTER
  61. MACARTHUR
  62. MACGREGOR
  63. MAHIR
  64. MERCER
  65. NATURE
  66. NOMAR
  67. OLIVIER
  68. OLLIVANDER
  69. OSMAR
  70. PALMER
  71. PIERRE
  72. PROSPER
  73. PRYOR
  74. QUADIR (and QADIR)
  75. RAIDER
  76. RAINER
  77. RANGER
  78. ROPER
  79. RUGER
  80. RYLER
  81. SANDER
  82. SEGER
  83. SILVER
  84. SIR
  85. SIRE
  86. SLATER
  87. STRYDER
  88. STRYKER
  89. SUTTER
  90. SYLAR
  91. SYLVESTER
  92. TAMIR
  93. TELLER
  94. THAYER
  95. THOR
  96. THUNDER
  97. TIGER
  98. TRAPPER
  99. TYMERE
  100. TYR
  101. VALOR
  102. VANDER
  103. VEER
  104. VLADIMIR
  105. WHEELER
  106. WHITAKER (and WHITTAKER)
  107. WILBUR
  108. WINDSOR
  109. ZEPHYR

What are your favorite boy names ending in R? Is there a category you like best?

First published on November 2, 2016, this post was revised substantially and re-published on September 23, 2020 and again on October 28, 2021.

boy names ending with R most popular boy names ending with R

 

About Abby Sandel

Whether you're naming a baby, or just all about names, you've come to the right place! Appellation Mountain is a haven for lovers of obscure gems and enduring classics alike.

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3 Comments

  1. I gravitate towards boy names that end in an “R”! Do you think they are too “matchy” sounding for brother names if everyone has names that end the same?

    1. Not necessarily! Archer + Asher would be too close for me, or Asher + Thatcher. But I’d love Parker + Thatcher together. And if you vary the number of syllables that helps, too – Oliver + Asher work well together. I suppose if you’re imagining a big family, you sort of have to lean into it + accept a certain amount of overlap. But if you’re thinking of three or four or even five kids, I think it would work just fine!

      PS – A friend of mine had three boys, all ending with N. AND her name ends with N, as does her husband. And I completely didn’t notice until they were naming their fourth + decided they had to keep the pattern. It’s weirdly easy to miss matching ending sounds!