Monty

Diminutive of Montague or Montgomery

I think of Monty as a quintessentially British name: cute and clunky, charmingly buttoned-up, so vintage it’s almost a joke. (Or maybe I’m just thinking of the Monty Python comedy group.)

But check out the statistics: it’s no joke that Monty is quietly back. In England and Wales it’s been in or near the Top 300 for a decade — similar to vintage nicknames Bertie and Percy. Even in the States, it’s rising year on year.

Usually my style leans towards full names on birth certificates, but I’d make an exception for Monty. If you disagree, there are more long-form options than you might think, for both boys and (perhaps even more charmingly) girls: Montague, Montgomery, Montana, Beaumont, Lamont, Montserrat, Montez…