Names That Mean Power

Althea is a poetic, almost ethereal name found in Greek myth and pastoral poetry, associated in modern times with the great tennis player Althea Gibson, the first African-American to win at Wimbledon.

Now seen as the chap in the smoking jacket in a 1930s drawing-room comedy, Reginald has actually been on the US popularity list every year since 1880.

Despite the success of so many O-starting boys names--Oliver, Owen, Otis, Oscar--Oswald has not yet shown any signs of resurrection, though he does have the animating nicknames Ozzie/Ozzy and Oz. The name has some literary cred--in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, Shakespeare's King Lear and a novel by H. G.Wells--and there was early cartoon character Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

This image of this distinguished Anglo-Scottish surname, drawn from the French place name of the ancient castle of Saint Foi de Montgomery, is rapidly shifting from fusty and formal to cool. And dashing short form Monty (or Monte) nudges it to cute.

Maverick meets Merritt in this strong sounding choice, which has its origins in Welsh, German, and Scottish. Notably borne by dancer Merrick Hanna, comedian and presenter Merrick Watts, and by Merrick Tremayne, the central character of Natasha Pulley's novel, The Bedlam Stacks, it was briefly bumped into the US Top 1000 in 2016 following The Supreme Court saga of Justice Merrick Garland.

Monte, pronounced with two syllables as brother Monty, is an old-fashioned nickname-name that's reclaiming a certain amount of dash and charm. It was recently chosen by actor Guy Pearce--which may signal a comeback.

Old time nickname that's starting to sound fresh again, à la Alfie and Freddie.

A name popular both in France (where it's Number 405) and within the Cajun population, it's more substantial than Eric, and occurs twice in the Harry Potter series.

Most famous as one of the many middle names of Professor Dumbledore from Harry Potter, Wulfric is an earlier form of the medieval English name Ulric. It has also belonged to an 11th- century Earl of Mercia and a 12th-century saint.

Cyrene was a mythical nymph and huntress who was beloved by Apollo. An ancient city in Libya was named after her.

Sovereign is one of those names only a celebrity could introduce, much like Saint or Sir who came before it. It was actually football player Cam Newton who first used the name for his daughter, Sovereign-Dior Cambella (sister to Camidas, Cashmere, and Chosen) in 2017. But more notably, it's the name Usher chose for his baby girl, Sovereign Bo, in 2020.

Godric is one of the unique baby names that has found more exposure since J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter universe came into our lives. Godric Gryffindor is an important historical figure in the series. In real life, Godric was a name popular in middle England, with many saints and sheriffs of the 11th century bearing the name. Godric, like other old English names Arthur, Edwin and Oswald, has potential to make a comeback as an easily-recognizable but creative choice for parents looking for names that are unique without being too challenging.

A mighty lion in sheep's clothing. Though Amandla looks, to the untrained eye, like a variant of milquetoast Amanda, it actually derives from the word for "power" in the Zulu and Xhosa languages, two of the major languages of South Africa. Anti-Apartheid activists often used the phrase "Amandla Awethu!", meaning "power to the people," as a rallying cry at protests. There was also a 2002 documentary about the role of music in the downfall of Apartheid called "Amandla."

Friendlier french form of ancient Germanic royal name Amalric or Emmerich.

It's difficult to conceptualize the numerical value of a trillion, but this extraordinarily large number name is a rising choice for baby boys.

Sovereign is a new addition to the baby name lexicon, recently used by such celebrity parents as Cam Newton and Usher for their daughters. But don't mistake it for an exclusively feminine name — part of Sovereign's appeal is its gender-neutral status, as it's given to roughly equal numbers of girls and boys each yera.

Also spelled Kedrick, this name has a double origin as either a variant of the surname name Kendrick, or a spelling spin on the literary Cedric, used by Sir Walter Scott for a character in his 1819 novel Ivanhoe. He likely based it on the legendary name Cerdic, which may be a contracted form of Caractacus. American football player Kedric Golston is a notable bearer.

The name of the mother of Aethelred the Unready was once common among the Anglo-Saxon nobility, and was briefly revived during the 19th century, only to be lost once again to history.

This name has been used in Denmark since the 13th Century, and is once again very popular there, now being in the Top 10. We don't see it crossing the Atlantic anytime soon, despite the strong meaning.

Also spelled Kedric, this name has a double origin as either a variant of the surname name Kendrick, or a spelling spin on the literary Cedric, used by Sir Walter Scott for a character in his 1819 novel Ivanhoe. He likely based it on the legendary name Cerdic, which may be a contracted form of Caractacus.