Baby Name Meanings
By Pamela Redmond · Updated September 2026
Across 10 pages
of 10
English
"elf power,"
With a meaning like "elf power," Alfreda could find some appeal among fantasy enthusiasts. "Freda" makes for a pleasant nickname.
Hebrew
"fortress, strength"
Maoz is a symbolic name given to boys born at Hannukah because of the song "Maoz Tzur," "Rock of Ages," which is sung at that time.
Swiss and German nickname for brave person
Enigmatic choice of enigmatic John Malkovich.
"strong, mighty"
Old World Jewish name that could travel to the New.
Spanish
"well pleasing + wealthy guardian"
A rare yet familiar sounding Spanish compound name, blending Evaristo and Eduardo together. It also appears in the Oz novels by L. Frank Braum (the source of the musical Wicked ).
Diminutive of Andrea, feminine form of Andrew
"strong and manly"
This unique one-syllable name was added to the mix by Mariel Hemingway for her now grown model/actress daughter; it could make a distinctive middle name or Bree substitute.
Romanian
"powerful, brave"
Decebal was the name of an ancient ruler of Dacia who resisted but was eventually conquered by the Roman military leader Traianus. Both Decebal and Traian are names used in modern Romania.
Irish
"dark, brave one"
Donnelly is among the more appealing Irish surname names, less well used than Donovan. Related options include the place name Donegal and the mythological god name Donegan.
Sanskrit
"terrible, formidable"
Bheem, the name of the second of the five sons of Pandu in the Hindu epic the Mahabharata, was renowned as a strong warrior. Bheem is the name of one of the two heroes of the Bollywood film RRR.
German
"brave friend"
Writer James Baldwin could make this an inspirational choice for a child of either sex.
"pleasant, agreeable, likeable"
One of the less attractive Hebrew choices.
Greek
"strength"
This male relative of the Emily family was borne by two Greek saints, one a fourth century martyr who destroyed pagan images and the other a ninth century bishop. Variations include Emilios and…
Bulgarian, English
"raspberry; little warrior"
An international and unisex choice, Malin is a rare northern English name associated with the city of Sheffield. In this case, it would mean "little warrior". As a Bulgarian choice, it is a masculine…
Latin or Greek
"crossing swords; strong"
Pronounced KILL-on, might lead a young boy astray--though that doesn't seem to have halted the progress of the popular Killian.
"strong-willed"
Alcina is an operatic name, best-known as the name of the beautiful sorceress of the eponymous Handel opera drawn from the Orlando poems. Alcina and her sister Morgana live on an island where Alcina…
Diminutive of Alcina, Greek
Alcie and Alsie are antiquated short forms that feel more baby-ready now that names such as Elsie, Elsa, and Isla are becoming popular again. Mother name Alcina was an operatic sorceress who turned…
English word name from Latin
"brave"
Valiant is an inspirational word name that can work for a child of any gender, though the six babies given this name last year were all boys.
French form of Gerard, German
"spear strength"
Geraud, as with many French variations of familiar names, makes the somewhat old-fashioned Gerard sound fresh and dashing. It's pronounced as if it ended with o, another trendy factor, though many…
Latin from Greek
"strength, valor"
Nerio was one of the Roman goddesses of war and a wife of Mars. Her name is among the many intriguing names that mean strong .
Chewa
"be strong"
This strong (literally) African name comes from the Chewa language of southern Africa.
