15 Fabulous September Baby Names for Your Fall Addition
This list may begin with Autumn, but it sure doesn't end there!
September is a month filled with awesome fall activities, from leap peeping in the northern reaches of the West and Midwest, to gardening with seasonal plants, and whipping up hearty, cool weather meals. It's also when parents-to-be (and their friends and fam) rack their brains to come up with September baby names! But luckily for anyone anxiety-ridden at the thought of making such an important decision, one of the calendar's most common birth months is also filled with events that can provide loads of great name inspo for your bundle of joy.
Think about it: September is home to Labor Day, which opens up a whole lot of wonderful, job-related names for babies arriving in the ninth month. That includes choices like Mason and Harper, which rank high on the Social Security Administration's annual list of the most popular baby names. Then there's the trendy Knox (which can be a shortened form of Equinox), as well as pretty names inspired by the month's birth flowers, birthstones, and even zodiac signs.
And for the bookworms out there, we've also gathered up September-themed monikers that have a literary connection. Want something a little more exotic? You'll also find September names taken from other languages below. So read on, jot down your favs, and then head over to 15 Nostalgic 1950s Baby Names that Are Suddenly Trendy Again if you're looking for a few suggestions that are a blast from the past!
Autumn
- Current SSA rank: 79
- Origin: English
- Meaning: autumn
This popular name might seem a bit obvi for a fall baby girl, but there's no denying its lyrical, lovely sound. Taken from the Latin word autumnus, it's been steadily climbing in the SSI rankings since it first checked in at #832 in 1969. Last year, there were 3030 newborns named Autumn in the United States, accounting for 0.171 percent of total female births. So while a familiar name in this country, it's also not terribly overused.
Related: Baby Names Inspired by Nature
Hunter
- Current SSA rank: 128
- Origin: English
- Meaning: one who hunts
For many Americans, fall means hunting season. And while this name has been dropping a bit in popularity since its heyday in 2000, when it hit #35 on the SSI's tally, it still makes a great choice for a September baby. Best known as the name of the famed journalist Hunter S. Thompson, it's also the moniker of female models Hunter McGrady, Hunter Schafer, and Hunter Tylo.
Related: Most Popular Baby Names for Boys
Aster
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: star
Speaking of gender neutral names, both boys and girls can be named Aster, although it is more commonly used for the latter. The aster is one of September's birth flowers, a beautiful posy with star-shaped petals around a bright yellow center. Named for the Greek word asteria, the aster is said to symbolize faith, wisdom, patience, and elegance.
Related: Baby Names Inspired by Flowers
Knox
- Current SSA rank: 209
- Origin: Scottish
- Meaning: round hill
This fashionable name can be considered an abbreviated form of Equinox. The astronomical first day of autumn, the fall equinox occurs in the Northern Hemisphere on either September 22, 23, or 24, so it could be an ideal choice for a baby boy born in the year's ninth month. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie named one of their sons Knox, and so did 1,701 Americans in 2024 alone.
Cassiopeia
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: cassia juice
Famed as the mother of Andromeda in Greek mythology, Cassiopeia is also a constellation best seen in the northern sky beginning in September. While the name may be a bit of a mouthful, the diminutive forms Cassie and Cass both make for short and sweet nicknames.
Related: Most Popular Baby Names for Girls
Aki
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Japanese
- Meaning: born in the autumn
If you want to get literal for your September babe's name, you could always opt for Aki, which means "born in autumn" in Japanese (though it also means "ancestor" in Finnish). Notably, Aki can be a boy's or a girl's name.
Sapphire
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Hebrew/Greek/Latin
- Meaning: blue
While the name Sapphire made its debut on the SSA rankings at #913 in 2022, it disappeared from the list last year. But keep in mind that the beautiful blue jewel of the same name, which is September's birthstone, is said to represent sincerity, faithfulness, and truth, and bring wealth while offering protection from harm. With such noble associations, trendy or not, Sapphire could be the perfect name for your little gem.
Mason
- Current SSA rank: 42
- Origin: English
- Meaning: worker in stone
Since Americans celebrate Labor Day on the first Monday in September, names themed around occupations make sense for babies born that month. While it's fallen in popularity from its 2012 heyday—when it ranked a showstopping #2 on the SSA countdown— Mason still remains one of the hottest names for boys in the U.S. That's probably due to celebs like Kourtney Kardashian choosing it for her baby's name.
Jora
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: autumn rain
There's something about rain in the fall that is comforting and cozy, as well as uniquely beautiful, and this relatively rare girl's name offers a sound as lovely as its meaning. In the United States, Jora may be considered the feminine form of Jory, while in the Slavic languages the name means "earth worker," which also connects it to the land and autumn's harvest.
Archer
- Current SSA rank: 115
- Origin: English
- Meaning: bowman
A hip modern boy's name, Archer has both occupational and autumnal hunting associations. This Anglo-Saxon surname has zoomed up the SSA rankings since its debut at #683 in 2009, and it shows no signs of slowing down. The popular FX animated series Archer may have bid goodbye in 2023, but last year marked the period of the name's greatest popularity.
Virginia
- Current SSA rank: 510
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: virginal, pure
For girl babies born in September, this old-timey sounding name can be used as a subtle tip of the hat to Virgo, one of the month's two astrological signs. The name of the first permanent English colony in the New World and legendary writer Virginia Woolf, its made SSA's rundown every year since 1900, which is as far as the list goes back. While it was most popular in 1921, when it came in at #6, we think it's time Virginia made a comeback.
Schuyler
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Dutch
- Meaning: scholar
The last time Schuyler appeared on the SSA list was 1994, when it snuck in at #980. But if you'd like to go with a more widely used name for a boy that still ties in to September's back-to-school connotation, think about Skyler. The phonetic spelling of Schuyler, it was ranked at #760 last year.
Harper
- Current SSA rank: 12
- Origin: English
- Meaning: harp player
By far the current favorite name for girls on this list, Harper fits into the group of monikers themed around professions and Labor Day. Celebs including Dave Grohl, Victoria and David Beckham, and Neil Patrick Harris have named their children Harper, but more famously, it was the first name of To Kill a Mockingbird author Harper Lee. At its 2019 peak, 10,494 newborns were given the name Harper.
Demeter
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: earth mother
While Demeter technically refers to a female entity, we think it would make a strong, poetic gender-neutral name, or even a great name for a boy. The Greek goddess of grain, the harvest, and agriculture, Demeter was Zeus's sister and represented growth and nourishment, all themes that relate to September.
Harvest
- Current SSA rank: unranked
- Origin: English
- Meaning: the gathering of crops
Derived from the Old English word "hærfest," this is a still-rarely heard name used only occasionally since the 1700s. But the term Harvest brings to mind ripe and rich bountiful blessings, so for parents looking for a melodic and distinctive name for a baby girl born in September, this could be the one.
Jill Gleeson is a travel journalist and memoirist based in the Appalachian Mountains of western Pennsylvania who has written for websites and publications including Good Housekeeping, Woman’s Day, Country Living, Washingtonian, Gothamist, Canadian Traveller, and EDGE Media Network. Jill is the travel editor for Enchanted Living. Learn more about her journey at gleesonreboots.com.
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