Modern Christian Baby Names
- Salem
Origin:
Biblical place-name or ArabicMeaning:
"safe"Description:
Salem is a biblical place-name in Canaan, believed to be the same as Jerusalem. Americans may be more familiar with Salem as the name of the Massachusetts town famous for its witch trials in the late 1600s. It's also a popular Arabic name widely-used for both genders.
- Mercy
Origin:
English word nameMeaning:
"compassion"Description:
The quality of mercy makes this lovely Puritan virtue name a quiet favorite today. Although it was most popular in the late nineteenth century, Mercy is on its way to a comeback -- it rose 143 spots between 2012 and 2013, making it one of the year's fastest-rising names. Right now, it's still stylish and distinctive, a rare and wonderful combination.
- Creed
Origin:
English word nameDescription:
Creed appeared on the US Top 1000 for the first time in over a century in 2016; it was the year's second-fastest-rising boys' name. It probably got a bump from the seventh movie in the Rocky series, called simply Creed. Some may know it from the character on the popular television show The Office.
- Ransom
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"shield's son"Description:
Ransom may be rakish and handsome, but it carries an unavoidable association with holding someone for ransom. But that kind of bad boy image might be exactly what attracts you to Ransom in the first place. While Ransom feels like a modern appellation ala Breaker or Ranger, it's interesting to note on the popularity chart that it was actually quite popular at the end of the 19th century but fell off the Top 1000 around 1930.
- Kyrie
Origin:
GreekMeaning:
"Lord"Description:
Kyrie may be a name of God used widely in the ancient church refrain Kyrie Elieson, or Lord, have mercy, but it's rising in popularity for boys in the US on the strength of basketball star Kyrie Irving. Irving pronounces the first syllable of Kyrie to rhyme with my, whereas with the religious word it rhymes with fear.
- Temperance
Origin:
Virtue nameDescription:
Not too long ago, Temperance was found only on lists of Puritan baby names.
- Fisher
Origin:
Occupational nameMeaning:
"fisherman"Description:
As a member of two trendy name categories, animal and occupational, this name broke into the Top 1000 in 2004 and would make a nice tribute to an angler Grandpa.
- Canaan
Origin:
Biblical place nameMeaning:
"The Promised Land"Description:
Pronounced KAY-nan, this Old Testament place name has a strong modern feel that blends in with on-trend choices like Carter, Colton, and Kayson, but also with Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and Tobias. Associated in the Bible with "The Promised Land", it is also the name of one of Noah's grandsons.
- Genesis
Origin:
Word nameDescription:
GENESIS With the sounds of Jennifer and Alexis, and the vibes of Eden and Serenity, Genesis is a Biblical inspired choice that has been popular in the US since the 2000’s.
- Jubilee
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"ram's horn"Description:
Jubilee has a joyous and jubilant aura, but it wouldn't be an easy name to carry, what with all that pressure to be a living, breathing, 24-7 party. Jubilee was the name selected by television's Duggars for their miscarried child.
- Halo
Origin:
English, word nameDescription:
Halo is a glowing word name that's both cosmic and spiritual, and with its shiny imagery and bright sounds, it was one of the fasted rising names in 2023.
- Saint
Origin:
English word nameMeaning:
"saint"Description:
Saint as a descriptive word name was first chosen by rocker Pete Wentz for his younger son (baby brother is Bronx), and now Kim Kardashian and Kanye West have catapulted the name into the celebrity stratosphere by choosing it for their baby boy. The couple called their baby "Saint" throughout the pregnancy because his conception had been so difficult. Saint was named in our predictions for the top baby name trends of 2015, on descriptive word names which also include Royal and Noble, King and Rogue. Saint is moving beyond the group of names that are only celebrity baby names and into the general lexicon.
- Halo
Origin:
American word nameDescription:
Being a modern word, Halo didn’t become used as a name until around the nineteenth century. Halo is now mostly given to girls, and has become more common since the Halo video game series was released in 2001, in which Halo rings are huge structures used as weapons, but do have a religious connection. A space age virtue name and possible honour name for Gloria.
- Palmer
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"one who holds a palm"Description:
Palmer is a name that derives from the fact that pilgrims often carried palms, thus the double meaning. It's a fresher sounding twist on such upper-crusty surname names as Porter and Parker.
- Psalm
Origin:
English word nameMeaning:
"a sacred song or hymn"Description:
Kanye West and Kim Kardashian added this new word name to the lexicon when they chose it for their second son and fourth child. Psalm and Saint certainly make a perfect sibset. A psalm is a hymn or sacred song. The bible contains a Book of Psalms.
- Trinity
Origin:
LatinMeaning:
"triad"Description:
A name that feels both spiritual and trendy, Trinity surged up the charts in the early 2000s, following the release of The Matrix. In just two years, it made an impressive jump from the latter end of the charts to the US Top 100, where it remained for more than a decade.
- Soul
Origin:
EnglishMeaning:
"soul, spirit"Description:
A charming addition to the ever-growing crop of virtue names.
- Chosen
Origin:
English word nameMeaning:
"one who is the object of choice or of divine favor"Description:
Chosen is officially a baby name thanks to Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, who chose (can't resist) the word as the name of his newborn son.
- Jireh
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"to see; the Lord will provide"Description:
Jireh is a spiritual name that has been rising significantly for both sexes in recent years, although still remains quite rare. Jehoveh-Jireh was the location of the binding of Isaac, where Jehovah told Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a burnt offering.
- Hosanna
Origin:
HebrewMeaning:
"deliver us"Description:
In the New Testament this was exclaimed by those around Jesus when he first entered Jerusalem. An exuberant choice!