Even if you slept through all of your high school English classes, you know that Shakespeare was one of the preeminent poets of all time. His work has become such an inspirational part of popular culture, that even if you haven't actually read any of his plays, you can probably rattle off a line or two from one of them with ease. With more than 150 sonnets and close to 40 plays in his body of work, there are lots of baby names inspired by Shakespeare's writings.
If you're looking outside of the norm for names for your new little bundle of joy, Shakespeare is a great place to start. It's hard not to be captivated by the romance of Romeo and Juliet, the drama of King Lear, and the humor of A Midsummer Night's Dream. The character names are mostly taken from Greek and Roman mythology, and in our opinion sound really cool in a classroom full of Janes.
And while we can't guarantee that a Shakespeare-inspired name will guarantee your kid the lead part in his school's rendition of Hamlet, we can tell you that the classic names on this list will stand the test of time, just like Shakespeare's poems. And you'll look super smart to all of your literary friends.