Roman Mythology Names (With Meanings and Popularity)

The name of a heavenly planet and the Roman goddess of beauty and love was an intimidating no-no until tennis champ Venus Williams put an athletic, modern spin on it.

Little known name of the goddess of the harvest — her name literally means nourishment, and is the origin of the word cereal. A possibility for the parent seeking something original, but with the aura of Roman myth. Her Greek counterpart is Demeter.

Any boy with this name, a synonym for power via the Greek mythology figure, better be strong of body, and of psyche.

Nona is a name sometimes given to the ninth child -- but unlikely to serve that purpose today. Musical cred: the name of a song by Motley Crue.

Nox was the Roman goddess of the night, equivalent to the Greek Nyx, from which her name was derived. Although identical in sound, Nox is unrelated to the Scottish masculine name Knox.

In Roman mythology, Caelus was the god of the sky prior to Jupiter. It's one of the few names that's virtually one-of-a-kind yet fits in with current stylish choices such as Caius and Callum (neither of which Caelus is etymologically related to).

The name of the Roman god of love, the son of Venus, considered so romantic as to be unfit for mere mortals. Yet now that Romeo and Venus herself are fair game for modern babies, why not Cupid?

Properly spelled Luã, this is a light and bright alternative to mega-popular Luna, with the same celestial meaning. Lua is also an attractive choice for tech-heads, with Lua being a popular programming language.

If you've rejected all the names on earth, you might move on to the sixth planet from the sun, also the Roman god of agriculture and plenty, and the origin of Saturday.

Another name for Jupiter, king of the Roman gods, this jovial name is eminently ready for modern use. Feminine variations include Jovita and Jovie.

Common Roman name mentioned in the Bible that has a crisply attractive sound.

Fauna is the Roman goddess of the earth as well as one of the fairies who protected Disney's "Sleeping Beauty". It can also be considered a word name with a scientific, nature focused feel. Used to as a way to refer to all the animals in a particular area, habitat, or time period, many might think of the phrase "Flora and Fauna" on seeing the name.

A classic virtue name for girls stretching back to the Pilgrim times, in more recent years, Honor has become one of the unisex baby names with a near-even gender split. Rarely used on boys before the 2010s, it has nearly doubled in use over the last decade.

The meaning of this ancient Roman god's name relates to transitions, hence its connection to the name of the first month of the new year, a time of fresh beginnings. Janus is usually depicted as a two-faced god facing in opposite directions, since he looks both to the future and the past. It's no surprise then, that Janus is one of the premiere January baby names. The Slavic form Janusz is more commonly used than the English, represented by the Polish cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, who has shot all of Steven Spielberg's films from Schindler's List to Lincoln.

In Roman mythology, Silvanus was the god of the forests. He protected farmers and fields and was credited with developing a system for marking field boundaries.

One of the names of the sun god Apollo, this is better known in its feminine form, Phoebe.

In Greek and Roman mythology, Aeneas was the legendary son of Venus (or Aphrodite) who was the hero of Troy and Rome. Appearing in the Aeneid by the poet Virgil, he goes on to found the Roman state and break the heart of Queen Dido of Carthage.

This Roman mythology (and planet) name would be very hard to handle. It derives from a root meaning cloud.

In the days of huge families, this name of the Roman goddess of prophecy and childbirth, and one of the Fates, would be saved for bambina number ten. Now it might be used for a girl born in October, the tenth month.