Bob

Bob is a boy's and girl's baby name of Germanic origin, a diminutive of Robert, from the Old High German Hrodebert combining hrod (fame, glory) and beraht (bright), meaning 'bright fame.' The Bob rhyming nickname evolved from Rob in medieval England.

Bob carries the comfortable, unassuming weight of a thousand American fathers and uncles. Bob Dylan, Bob Hope, Bob Marley — three men named Bob who each redefined their respective art forms. There is something wonderfully paradoxical about Bob: it is possibly the plainest name in the English language, yet its bearers have produced some of the most extraordinary work in human history.