Middle Names with Meaning

For basketball fans, in honor of Magic Johnson. Or anyone who believes in magic.

A beyond-bold shooting-star name choice, sure to raise some relatives' eyebrows.

Fortune is a middle name choice designed to generate good luck and prosperity.

Rowdy was first famously used as a given name in the television series Rawhide, with the young Clint Eastwood playing Rowdy Yates. More recently, competitive swimmer Rowdy Gaines has been featured in a series of TV commercials, and a new badass baby name is gaining notice.

Mysterious.

African-American and women's rights activist Sojourner Truth was born as Isabelle into enslavement. She adopted her new name when she began traveling and preaching abolition in 1843. Sojourner is a heroine name that may, with the rise of spiritual word names such as Journey and Genesis, finally be ready for prime time.

Serena in all its variant spellings is such a widely-used name that reducing it to its root word, Serene, might not occur to some. But like Pax and Clement, Serene is an excellent name for a calm child.

No low self-esteem for this kid, or so his parents hope.

Blessing is among the Top 1000 girls' names in the UK and recently joined the ranks in the US as well. With modern spiritual names like Shiloh, Chosen, and Halo trending upwards, Blessing is likely to continue to rise in popularity.

These days, it's more likely you'd call your daughter the popular Belle or Bella.

Asking for trouble.

Alternative to Princess or Queenie.

A musical name that is undeniably cool and, well, rhythmic. Its biggest challenge may be the spelling. Well, maybe not the biggest challenge. Save this one for a middle name.

Evocative word name that's refreshingly straightforward. Overtones of Christianity and penalty. More subtle option: Cruz.

A musical name without much rhythm or harmony.

New, fast, cool, and chosen by director Robert Rodriguez, whose other sons are Rebel, Rocket, and Rogue, all somewhat risky options.

"Girls Gone Child" blogger Rebecca Woolf made Boheme a first name when she gave it to one of her twin daughters (the other one's name is Reverie). La Boheme -- "The Bohemian" -- is a Puccini opera that was transmogrified into the modern play Rent. Boheme means a literary or artistic person who lives outside conventional society.

One of the boastful, ultra-modern word names soaring in popularity right now. Though it's a bit more popular for girls than boys -- the "cy" ending reads a little feminine -- it's solidly unisex, with over 100 baby boys being named Legacy in 2017. This is one of the many uplifting words that make unique unisex names.

Reminiscent of Puritan and Pilgrim name choices, Sincere is a relatively modern virtue name that has been in the US Top 1000 since the 2000s.

Ballad could be the masculine answer to Aria. An obvious and cute nickname is Lad or Laddie.