Names That Mean Honor

Names That Mean Honor

Names that mean honor symbolize the hope that your child grows up to be honored and respected, and that they behave honorably. Names related to honor and respect have meanings such as praise, glory, esteemed, admirable, and integrity.

Baby names meaning honor include current favorites like Nora and Jude. The gender neutral name Honor itself is on the rise for both sexes.

Along with Nora, other girl names meaning honor in the US Top 1000 include Arya, Cleo, Esme, Gloria, and Keilani.

Along with Jude, other boy names that mean honor in the US Top 1000 include Brian, Judah, and Timothy.

Unique names with honor-related meanings and much potential include Athalie, Cadogan, Sadako, and Zuko.

Honor is a strong sentiment to imbue in your child through his or her name. Take a look at our complete lineup if you need an honorable baby name or a name that means honor and respect for your child, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

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Complete Guide to Honor Names

  1. Jude
    • Origin:

      Latin diminutive of Judah
    • Meaning:

      "praised"
    • Description:

      Jude is a modern star, maintaining a steady level of popularity -- but not TOO much popularity -- for more than a decade now. Thank Jude Law and the great Lennon-McCartney song "Hey Jude", double-handedly responsible for propelling Jude up the charts.
  2. Nora
    • Origin:

      Diminutive of Honora or Eleonora, Latin
    • Meaning:

      "honor or meaning unknown"
    • Description:

      Nora is a lovely, refined name that conjures up images of Belle Epoch ladies in fur-trimmed coats skating in Central Park. Long seen as a quintessentially Irish name though its roots are not in Ireland, Nora is a quietly stylish favorite that's tiptoed to the top of the popularity ladder.
  3. Esme
    • Origin:

      French
    • Meaning:

      "beloved"
    • Description:

      Esmé comes from the past participle of the Old French verb esmer, meaing "to esteem" or "to love." It can also be considered a derivative of the Spanish name Esmeralda, which means "emerald".
  4. Cleo
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "glory"
    • Description:

      Cleo, one of the few girls' names to boast the cool-yet-lively o ending, is of course short for Cleopatra, the name of one of the most powerful women in history.
  5. Mira
    • Origin:

      Latin, Slavic, Arabic, Sanskrit
    • Meaning:

      "admirable; peace; female ruler; ocean"
    • Description:

      This name owes its present life to actress Sorvino. Mira and Mirra have an arty aura.
  6. Zuko
    • Origin:

      Xhosa
    • Meaning:

      "glory"
    • Description:

      No, this name is not an homage to Grease! Zuko is a Xhosa (Zulu) boys' name meaning glory. In a world of Zekes, Zaks and Zanes, Zuko could make a refreshing choice for parents looking for something short and snappy.
  7. Timothy
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "honoring God"
    • Description:

      A second-tier classic, the New Testament Timothy moves in and out of fashion more than John and James. But though it peaked in the 1960s, many modern parents still appreciate its familiarity and lively rhythm. And the short form Tim feels eternally boyish.
  8. Judah
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "praised"
    • Description:

      Judah is the strong, resonant Old Testament name of the son of Jacob who was the ancestor of one of the tribes of Israel, and from whom the word Jew is derived. Some of the names' popularity might be attributable to the similarly named Jude Law.
  9. Aryan
    • Origin:

      Indo-Iranian
    • Meaning:

      "warrior, honorable"
    • Description:

      Aryan derives from the Sanskrit word ārya, meaning "honorable" or "high-born." As a term, Aryan was used to describe Indo-Europeans—particularly Iranians—who shared common religious, cultural, and linguistic history. It was later misapplied by the Nazis to refer solely to Germanic and Nordic Caucasians, ultimately corrupting the term.
  10. Brian
    • Origin:

      Irish
    • Meaning:

      "strong, virtuous, and honorable"
    • Description:

      The origins of the name Brian are not entirely clear, but it is suspected that it evolved from an Old Celtic word related to nobility. In Ireland the name is associated with Brian Boru, the most famous of all Irish warrior-kings, credited with driving the Vikings out of Ireland around the year 1000.
  11. Laszlo
    • Origin:

      Hungarian
    • Meaning:

      "glorious ruler"
    • Description:

      The Hungarian classic Laszlo, with its zippy 'z' middle and energetic 'o' ending, has become something of a hipster option, beginning to be considered by cutting-edge parents.
  12. Sena
    • Origin:

      Korean; Hindi; Turkish; Arabic; Ewe
    • Meaning:

      "this world's beauty or grace; army; to praise; bringing heaven to earth"
    • Description:

      Sena is one of those names that is as obscure in the Western World as it is simple and straightforward. Sena exists as a name in a range of languages and cultures and may be pronounced like Senna (with a soft e) or Sienna.
  13. Arya
    • Origin:

      Sanskrit; Modern variation of Aria
    • Meaning:

      "noble; air/song"
    • Description:

      Arya was derived from an Indo-Iranian word meaning "Aryan" or "noble." It is a masculine given name in Iran, Indonesia, Bali, and Sanskrit-speaking regions of India. In Hindu- and English-speaking parts of the world, Arya is more often a feminine name, the latter influenced by the similar Italian name Aria, meaning "air" or "song."
  14. Rin
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "dignified, severe"
    • Description:

      A very popular girls' name in Japan whose sound is consistent with its meaning. Another possibility is Ren.
  15. Aeneas
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "the praised one"
    • Description:

      He was the legendary son of Venus, hero of Troy and Rome, and broke the heart of Queen Dido of Carthage. Sure, its more challenging than Charlie - but if you're looking this name up, that's probably part of its appeal.
  16. Norah
    • Origin:

      English, Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "woman of honor, light"
    • Description:

      The skyrocketing success of singer Norah Jones brought this spelling of the name onto the pop charts in 2003. As well as being a spelling variant of Nora in English, it's also an alternative transcription of the Arabic name Nura, from Nur/Noor "light".
  17. Zimri
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "my music, my praise"
    • Description:

      This unusual and spunky biblical name was one of the Kings of Israel as well as one of Judah's grandsons and has a wonderful meaning. We'd like to see Zimri being used more, and we think it has potential — "traveling lite" names, or 2 syllable names ending in -i, such as Zuri, Ezri, and Rafi are red-hot right now.
  18. Judith
    • Origin:

      Hebrew
    • Meaning:

      "woman from Judea"
    • Description:

      The biblical Judith, the fourth most popular name in 1940, may be getting ready for a comeback in its full, elegant, if somewhat solemn form. Many of those earlier Judiths were called Judy—some after Judy (born Frances) Garland—preferring it over their more formal proper name. Today, Judith, like Deborah, may have shaken off just enough to appeal to parents looking for a traditional, yet under-the-radar biblical name. And Jude would be a likelier nickname these days than the Judge Judy connection.
  19. Yoshi
    • Origin:

      Japanese
    • Meaning:

      "good, respectful"
    • Description:

      A classic Japanese name known to kids around the world as a Nintendo video-game character.
  20. Odelia
    • Origin:

      Hebrew, German
    • Meaning:

      "I will praise the Lord or wealth"
    • Description:

      Pretty Hebrew name that would create a strong but feminine impression, as well as a variant of the Germanic name Odilia or Ottilie.