Names That Mean Good

Traditionally a feminine name in Scandinavian culture, where these days it's mostly considered a grandmother name. Americans may associate it with Eivor Varinsdottir, a character from Assassain's Creed. She is likely the inspiration for the parents who gave this name to twelve boys and eight girls in 2022.

Concise and cool, Kota is a name with multiple origins, making it a versatile choice that travels well.

A little-known Sam name with a lovely evocative meaning.

Tashi is a Tibetan word meaning "good fortune," and is also used as a given name and surname in Tibet and Bhutan.

A name borne by nine popes and several saints, which carries strong Catholic connotations. British politician Jacob Rees-Mogg named his sixth child Sixtus Dominic Boniface Christopher in 2017.

French form of Euphrasia. This was the real name of Cosette in Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. It was popular in French up to and around the turn of the 20th century, but fell out of the French Top 500 in 1943, just over 80 years after the publication of the novel.

Nashira is one of those obscure space names that might rise along with such heavenly choices as Orion, Luna, and even Nevaeh. A giant star in Capricorn, Nashira is an unusual and attractive name with several positive associations.

Derived from the Igbo elements ífé meaning "thing" and ọ́má, "good" or "beautiful."

Too close to "payola."

Pleasant, in a Bon Jovi kind of way.

In Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet, the friend who persuades Romeo to go to the party where he meets Juliet. Alas.

Peyami is of Turkish origin stemming from the Persian word peyam, and as an upbeat meaning.

Beautiful West African name that could appeal across cultures.

Used both as a given name and as a surname, Bashir is a familiar but still unusual choice in the USA and UK, even among Muslim families. In 2014, only 25 boys were named Bashir in the US. One reason for its low usage could be a connection to Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted for war crimes, including genocide, in Darfur.

In the US, Rashad is one of the most popular and best-known Arabic names, through several sports and entertainment celebrities.

Tuvia is the Hebrew cognate of Tobias or Tobiah, found in the Bible and used in this form in Israel. The film "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind" included a character named Tuvia, who was female, pointing to the biggest downside of this name to the English-speaking ear: It sounds quite feminine.

Tobi is typically used as an alternate spelling of Toby, a common nickname for Tobias. In the anime series Naruto, the name Tobi is written in kanji giving it the meaning "ten tails."

Offbeat name sometimes heard in the African-American community.

Aimo was most common in Finland and Scandinavian during the first half of the 20th century.

While Tobin is technically a variation of the Biblical Tobias and so a male name, it's a newfangled version that's been drafted for the girls' team by Olympic soccer star Tobin Heath, who plays for the U.S. women's national professional soccer team.