Virtues and Concepts

An admirable quality to impart; Pleasant was used by Charles Dickens in Our Mutual Friend and in modern times is known via American Girl dolls creator Pleasant Rowland.

A handful of baby girls were named Poem in the US in the most recent year, along with Poet and Poetry. But of course, these word names can work for boys too.

In France, pronounced PRO-spare, Prosper is a fairly common name; here it presents a worthy aspirational message for a child.

Prudence, like Hope and Faith, is a Puritan virtue name with a quiet charm and sensitivity that is slowly returning to favor, though it hasn't yet registered on the charts.

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.

Even less subtle than Duke or Earl, this name shot up the popularity charts in 2013, the same year young Prince George was born and the craze for all things royal (and Royal) began. Today, it's a leading boys' name on Nameberry's own popularity charts.

Serena in all its variant spellings is such a widely-used name that reducing it to its root word, Serene, might not occur to some. But like Pax and Clement, Serene is an excellent name for a calm child.

Reminiscent of Puritan and Pilgrim name choices, Sincere is a relatively modern virtue name that has been in the US Top 1000 since the 2000s.

This strong Spanish name that refers to the Virgin Mary (Our Lady of Solitude) has been made accessible by broadcaster Soledad O'Brien -- who shows how well it combines with an Anglo surname. Her birth name was Maria de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien.

True has become an accepted first and middle name; Truth makes an even stronger statement. And with nearly 150 baby boys named Truth in the US in the most recent year counted, as many as were named Ross, the word name is edging up on the Top 1000.

A modern virtue name possibility.

Will has definitely replaced Bill, not only as a nickname for William but as a stand-alone name as well, partly thanks to England's Prince William, also known as Wills.

Win is an upbeat, can-do name that can be a short form of one of the buttoned-up British choices above or can stand on its own. Welsh Wyn is another possibility.

Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and singer Ciara named their son Win Harrison. Harrison is Wilson's father's first name.

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 names such as Bodhi and Zion, and recently entered the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2022.