Virtue Names For Baby Boys

Amanda writes:

We are pretty sure we are expecting a daughter late this fall. We have a daughter who is one named Hope Elizabeth. Our last name is Burleson. I really really love virtue names, and I just love the name Mercy for baby # 2. In case this baby or future children are boys, the only virtue name for a boy I can think of that I like is Justice. Can you or your sweet readers think of anything else? We are moving to an African country where virtue names are very common, so while I do think having all your kids with virtue names is a bit cheesy, I also love it and think it is beautiful and perfect for us.

OH, yes, boy virtue names are so sadly skimpy!

One of my favorites is Merit.

Another is August. I think of it as a month name but it’s also a virtue name: the word august means “inspiring admiration; venerable; of supreme dignity.”

I also like Worth. I think it comes across as a pleasingly old-fashioned name, like Ward.

Sterling works, too, if we think of it as referring to character: one definition of sterling is “thoroughly excellent.”

The Baby Name Wizard mentions Constant, Sincere, Reason, Truth, and Wisdom.

Or there’s Earnest: “serious and sincere.”

Or Loyal.

Or True.

Or Noble.

Or Moral.

Or Reliance, which sounds a little like the more common name Riley.

Pax might work: it’s a word for peace. However, it’s generally used for IMPOSED peace—the kind of peace a stronger country forces on a weaker one (Pax Britannica, Pax Romana). On the other hand, I find that doesn’t keep me from thinking of the word as meaning the regular kind of peace, and the Britannica/Romana addition being the part that makes it forced.

I also suggest Able. There could be some spelling issues because of confusion with the name Abel—but my guess is that the little Abels out there get misspelled as Able, too.

I’m not sure how far you want to drift from mainstream names, but Benevolent is a great virtue name, and has the more familiar nickname Ben if needed. Or Philanthropy, with Phil? I don’t know, these might be getting a little close to names like Peace-That-Passeth-Understanding Jones.

Can you think of more boy virtue names to add to our list?

49 thoughts on “Virtue Names For Baby Boys

  1. Carolyn

    What about Valor? I don’t know if it’s actually used as a name, but it seems like the male equivalent of Valerie and Val Kilmer makes the nn usable for boys.

    Reply
  2. Beth

    Maybe this is a bit of stretch, but how about Constantine? To me it seems a bit like a male counterpart to Constance.

    Your girl names Mercy and Hope are both lovely.

    Reply
  3. Hope T.

    I love virtue names, also. Swistle has listed most of my favorites but I also like Clement – “mild and merciful”. To my mind, a sibling pair named Clement and Earnest would be perfect.

    Reply
  4. Nicole Trager

    Well this is tough.. I do really like Noble for a boy. Some Latin virtue names may suit boys better rather than their English variations.. How about..

    Dexter- Right
    Verus – Truth
    Fidelis- Faithful
    Fortis- Strong, Brave

    I would encourage you to think of virtues you would like a boy to reflect and looking in a latin online dictionary… my fave from this list is Fortis(nn Fort).

    Reply
  5. changelivlife

    This was fun! The very first one I thought of was Valor, which the first commenter mentioned.

    I have several–though some are definitely a stretch.

    Chance
    Victor
    Magnus
    Royal
    Maverick
    Courage
    Wise
    Prosper
    Kindred
    Zeal
    Trust
    Solace

    And I would second Swistle’s suggestions of Merit and Worth.

    My favorite from the one’s I listed? Prosper. Prosper Burleson.

    I love it already. Good luck to you and thanks for the fun topic.

    Reply
  6. Megan

    Wow! The only ones I came up with were Justice and True. I’m impressed with everyone’s ideas :) Really love the sound of Noble.

    Reply
  7. beyond

    I like the sibset Hope and Mercy! The names I can think of have been suggested. I do like Valor and Worth and Noble very much, all strong and masculine sounding. I also think Victor and Ernest would work wonderfully. Hope and Victor: LOVE.
    Goos luck!

    Reply
  8. liz

    My favorite girl virtue names are Patience and Prudence. Especially for twins.

    They can also be Patient (Pat) and Prudent (Denny) for boys. Strong and Swift. Felix is also a good one, as is Loyal.

    Reply
  9. Patricia

    Years ago I knew a boy named Freeland, and I’ve come across Freeman as a given name too.

    The Puritans favored virtue names, including these for boys (most of which wouldn’t work too well today):
    Loyal
    Justice
    Calm
    Increase
    Fortitude
    Noble

    I’m not sure virtue names work as well for boys as for girls. Maybe another theme for the boy(s) in your family? Biblical names? Surnames of famous men you admire, eg., Lincoln, Jefferson… or the entire name, such as Thomas Jefferson Surname? Or classic names with virtuous meanings?

    Reply
  10. vanessa steck

    this is a tricky one, because I generally dont like virtue names even on girls, unless they are already/also established as names (e.g. Hope, Grace). But that’s just me and my crazy.
    But also…there just aren’t a lot of great boy virtue names out there! Also, Hope is lovely–truly–but tricky to find a boy name for. (Mercy is nice with it, although I’d prefer Grace, which seems somehow less burdensome. Or Honora, which I like because it is less burdensome–adding the a takes away some of the pressure. But this has nothing to do with boys virtue names.

    So, OK.
    Tru I like as a nickname for Truman.Justus MAYBE. My favorite, though, is Sterling or August. Hope and Sterling. Hope and August. Nice.q

    Reply
  11. Anonymous

    I really like the suggestion of Kindred, nn Kin from above. I love Ben Franklin. If I was looking for a boy’s virtue name, I’d likely turn to the Silence Dogood letters and consider every capitalized word. These don’t seem as much virtue words, but still interesting.

    – Consequence, nn Quin
    – Rhetoric, nn Rick or Rhett.
    – Liberty, nn Bert
    – Reverence, nn Vern

    Reply
  12. Ashley

    Favourite post EVER. I love virtue names! At the risk of repeating (sorry), some of my faves for boys are (stars by ones I LOVE):

    Constant
    Valor*
    Noble*
    Pacific
    Zeal/Zealous
    Wisdom
    Worth*
    Fate
    Wrestling*
    Prosper
    Strong
    True*

    Mercy is one of my favourites for girls, along with Remember, Patience and Comfort (the last two are old family names, too).

    Reply
  13. The Mrs.

    Oh, the name ‘Ernest’ is so great! (Who can resist “The Importance of Being Ernest”?)

    As far as new names to add to the list… what about ‘Strong’? Or even ‘Armstrong’? Especially with the last name of Burleson!

    I’ve heard the name ‘Manly’ before for a boy. It reminds me of ‘Manny’ or ‘Danny’, and I would imagine most boys would see being manly as a virtue.

    ‘Frank’ would qualify as well. “Let me be frank with you…” It means to be honest.

    ‘Bold’ Burleson would be good. It sits fine on the ear because of names like ‘Bo’.

    Early Americans used the name ‘Humble’ for guys. Humble Burleson.

    Virtue names are some of my favorites, and boys DO get overlooked a lot in this category. Excellent post, Swistle!

    Best wishes to you and your growing family (whether here or abroad)! Hope and Mercy sound beautiful together.

    Reply
  14. kimma

    Keen is a good one that hasn’t been mentioned yet. It is used in Ireland, but often spelled Keane (I don’t know if this changes its meaning.)

    Another is Maxim “a brief expression of a general truth, principle, or rule of conduct”.

    Felix is one of my favourite boys names – I hadn’t really thought of it as a virtue name before, but it definitely fits this category.

    Reply
  15. Joanne

    I think this is wildly interesting. I never have thought about it myself, but I do always like the character of Happy in Death of a Salesman. I just love the idea of hearing “Happy” every time you hear your name. I just heard of a baby named Firstname Scholastica, so maybe Scholastic? I don’t know what could work for a nickname, though. I also wonder if Job (pronounced Jobe, like the bible version) is synonymous with Patience enough that it would be a virtue name on it’s own. I really like Noble and Valor, for names that have been mentioned.

    Reply
  16. Mrs. Haid

    I had a student named Noble and he didn’t like his name at all. Especially as a crafty, sneaky little middle schooler! But I like the idea of living up to your name.

    Reply
  17. Nicole J.

    It isn’t a virtue, but I think Shepard has the same feeling.

    I also like Perseverance, with a nickname of Persy/Percy or Vance, although it might be too close to Constance to be a good boys name. Might make a good middle name.

    There was a prominent judge named Learned Hand. I’ve always wondered how his mother felt calling a baby Learned.

    According to his Wiki, which I just looked at, Learned was his middle name, which supports my feeling that virtue names on boys might be better as middles. His Wiki says he had a cousin named Augustus Noble Hand, and he named a daughter Constance, so it may have been a family tradition, like the poster is considering.

    Like Nicole Trager said, the poster may want to consider looking at virtue names in other languages. For example, Kraft, which means strength in German.

    It’s a great question!

    Reply
  18. Megz

    Depends a bit on what your definition of a ‘virtue’ for a male is. My first thought was “Brave” but it doesn’t make a good name. Neither does Bravo, Bravisimo or Brava.

    Personally I also think Charisma is a great attribute for men, but makes a better name for women.

    A couple of other attributes that would work as names (I don’t think they’ve been said already):

    Hardy
    Hero
    Gallant
    Grant (as in ‘to give’)

    Reply
  19. Anonymous

    My favorite for a boy, brother to Hope, is Victor. Maybe Victory, called by the full name or by Victor.

    Awesome suggestions, I never would have thought of some of these…

    Reply
  20. Anonymous

    I just met a man named Wisdom. He’s from Ghana originally & is now in Canada as an academic (suitably!) On meeting him, I hadn’t yet read this post & thought of how Wisdom seems like such a *natural* name I’m surprised it isn’t used more often. It has a resonance with Adam & Wesley. However, it could be shortened to Whiz, which depending on your taste is either fantastic or not-so-great! (Could also be shortened to Dom, ala Dominic?)

    Reply
  21. Anonymous

    I have quadruplets (3 girls and a boy) and they all have virtue names. My girls are: Unity, Heavenly, abd Ethereal (I know that is not really a virtue name but it’s close). My son’s name is Blithe, which means “happy” or “spirited” and his middle name means “hero”, so his name means “happy and spirited hero”!

    Reply
  22. Anonymous

    I also have triplets (all girls) and even though they don’t have virtue names, one of their names means “queenly”. I guess that is why I love names like “Noble” and “Royal”. One of my other daughters has the middle name of “Lovely”! And, how about the name “Virtue” for a girl? And I really like “Kindred” for either a boy or girl! Oh, Jessica Alba has 2 girls named Haven and Honor. And, I have a friend whose daughter is “Lively” (my suggestion!).
    PS My name is Ila Laventier.

    Reply
  23. Anonymous

    Sorry!! I justt wanted to clearify that I am the one with the triplets and quadruplets, and my name is Ila Laventier!

    Reply
  24. Amber

    Our 4.5 year old daughter is Mercy, and our sons have the middle names of Honor and Valor. Mercy’s name is always received well, and often with comments of “I know someone who’s pregnant and can’t come up with a name–I’ll have to suggest that one!”

    Reply
  25. Sheri

    I just met a little girl named Honor with a brother named Justice! So cool to see names like this on actual kiddos!

    Reply

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