Baby Name Meanings
Names with Inspirational Meanings
Across 14 pages
of 14
Venturo
Spanish
"good fortune, good luck"
Upbeat choice.
Verity
Latin
"truth"
If you love Puritan virtue names and want to move beyond Hope and Faith and Grace, this is a wonderful choice, both for its meaning and its sound. A rare find here, though occasionally heard in…
Vero
Latin
"true"
The o ending and the positive meaning in many languages makes this a winner, and with the feminine Vera making a surprise return, and the new love for the letter 'V', this becomes a name that has…
Veronique
French form of Veronica
"true image"
Veronica seems poised to rise again, along with many other V names, and with it may follow this more romantic French version.
Vikram
Hindi
"valorous"
Another traditional Indian name, best known here via novelist Vikram Seth.
Von
Norse
"hope"
One of those midcentury shortenings that are starting to sound cool again, though we prefer Van.
Vrai
French word name
"true"
A happy combination of several desirable genres: it's a word name, it has a foreign accent, and it has a highly virtuous meaning. And few other parents will be bold enough to choose it.
Wilfred
English
"desires peace"
Wilfred is one of those Old Man Names that still sounds fusty in the US but is fashionable in the UK. It comes with readymade short forms Will, Wilf, or Fred and might make an adventurous alternative…
Wisdom
Word name
A bit too self-congratulatory and, understandably, exceedingly rare. Still, if you're looking for a modern virtue name for your daughter, this may be one of the best qualities to exemplify.
Xolani
Zulu
"peace"
Traditionally, Xolani is a masculine Zulu name stemming from the word "uxolo", which means peace and goodwill. Beware – in this case, the X is pronounced as a one of the famous Zulu clicking sounds…
Yinuo
Chinese
"one promise; follow, promise"
Yinuo is a Chinese female name meaning "promise" and originated as part of an idiomatic expression "Yinuo Qianjin" (一诺千金), which means "one promise; one thousand gold" or "keep your word.".…
Zaki
Arabic
"full of virtue, pure"
Not related to Zack, Zacky, Zachary, or Zachariah – but many will assume it is.
Zalman
Variation of Solomon
"peace"
More familiar now via its Salman form, thanks to author Rushdie; this is an unusual biblical alternative.
Zaynab
Tree name or Arabic,"beauty, grace"
"beauty, grace"
Zaynab, from the Arabic word for beauty and the name of a flowering tree, was the name of a granddaughter, daughter and two wives of the Prophet Muhammed. Related names include the simplified forms…
Zen
Japanese
"meditation"
A spiritual word name used by actor Zoe Saldana for her son as well as more recently Nick Cannon and Alyssa Scott for their late son. Zen has been trending in recent years along with other spiritual…
Zinedine
Arabic
"beauty of the faith"
Zinedine Zidane is France's biggest soccer star, spawning a legion of little Zinedines in that country.
Zuelia
Arabic
"peace"
An occasionally heard African name, hobbled by a zoolike sound.
Zuma
American place-name and Arabic
"peace"
Zuma was entered in the American name lexicon when musicians Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale chose it for their son. Californians will recognize Zuma as the name of a beautiful beach in Malibu, and…
Zuzen
Basque
"just, justice"
The Basque name has enough Zs in it to make it look spaceaged and trendy, but it is in fact a traditional Basque name. Despite its wonderful meaning, it may be too close to the feminine English name…
Želimir
Croatian, Serbian
"the one who wishes peace"
Sleek and handsome with a beautiful meaning, Želimir is made up of the Serbo-Croatian želeti "to desire" and the Slavic element mirŭ "peace", which come together to create a calming and hopeful name.…