Middle Names with Meaning

When actress Rachel Griffiths chose this highly unusual name for her son, many assumed it was a bizarre invention. But a noted Australian poet (Griffiths is an Aussie) is known by this name.

Promise is one of those word names with an uplifting meaning that is making inroads as a girls' name, like sisters Dream and Serenity. How promising is Promise as a first name? Our try at cleverness illustrates perhaps the biggest problem with naming your baby girl Promise: It will be difficult for people to resist making bad puns on the name. We promise (argh) you'll be tired of hearing them well before your baby Promise's first birthday.

Glory sounds fresh and uplifting and a lot more modern than Gloria (which is definitely feeling the stirrings of a revival, though some might still view it as a terminal Old Lady name). Glory, as in "Glory Be" and "Old Glory," has both a religious and a patriotic flavor.

A name that looks intriguing and masculine on paper, but is, unfortunately, a homonym for a girl's name.

Most will see this as a refreshing middle name possibility, but Bristol Palin baby daddy Levi Johnston used it as a first name for his new daughter, Breeze Beretta.

One of the boastful, ultra-modern word names soaring in popularity right now. Though it's a bit more popular for girls than boys -- the "cy" ending reads a little feminine -- it's solidly unisex, with over 100 baby boys being named Legacy in 2017. This is one of the many uplifting words that make unique unisex names.

Patience is a passive virtue turned engaging name, fresher than Hope, Faith, or even Charity. Its resemblance to the trendy Payton may be one reason for its recent spike in popularity.

Blessing is among the Top 1000 girls' names in the UK and recently joined the ranks in the US as well. With modern spiritual names like Shiloh, Chosen, and Halo trending upwards, Blessing is likely to continue to rise in popularity.

Asking for trouble.

Nicole Richie and Joel Madden added this rocking name to the lexicon of day names, which have their roots in the African tradition of naming a child after the day of the week, time of day, or season in which he or she was born. But they wisely used it as a middle name.

Revel is a joyous word name that may appeal to parents wanting a non-traditional Biblical choice or simply a name that expresses how they feel.

In Buddhism, Dharma embodies the basic principles of cosmic existence--making it a fitting name for the hippyish character on the sitcom Dharma and Greg, whose middle name was Freedom.

Mysterious.

A recently popular spiritual name that entered the Top 500 in 2003.

Drummer entered the baby name lexicon thanks to blogger No Big Dill, who chose it for her newborn son, who joins five older sisters. Drummer is right in step with other occupational names in vogue now, from Archer to Gardener. Let's just hope Drummer doesn't prefer to play the piano.

This cosmological name has a zippy feel that might work well for the galactic parent looking for the perfect name for their own little star.

Among the children named Heaven are the daughters of TV personality Brooke Burke and rap singer Lil' Mo, who also has a daughter named God'iss Love. Some parents have taken to using Nevaeh instead—Heaven spelled backwards.

Just like Flora is for botanicals, Jewel is the generic gemstone name, not used much since the early twentieth century, when it was seen as a symbol of how precious a daughter could be. The French version, Bijou, feels more modern, as do Pearl and Ruby.

Cedric the Entertainer chose this for his daughter, but most other parents would find it, though optimistic, not exactly substantial.

Some parents, including rapper Ludacris, are literally bestowing good karma on their children; it could just join the new spiritual name congregation.