Extreme Challenge: Seeking hero names to suit our style

So, we named our son Wyc after a hero of ours, a 14th century Christian reformer — John Wycliffe, who led a truly transformative life. You can read a bit more about him from the link in my usercard. We absolutely LOVE the name Wyc, but it’s a hard one to follow up on.

Today, I’m seeking more hero names that would fit our style.

If possible, first have a read of our thoughts, then comment. And you’re definitely welcome to comment whatever your background.

Heroes We Like
We love King Alfred, one of the earliest English Kings, for the awesome life he lived. Though neither my wife nor I are a 100% sold on the name, and we don’t like the standard nicknames: Alfie, Alf, Fred. This isn’t a huge deal, b/c it’s possible it would be a middle name we don’t actually use day-to-day.

Phillip, the evangelist and deacon in the Bible (not the apostle) is also a hero of ours. It’s perhaps a tad too much a dad name though, with so many people our age bearing the name. But we love the nickname Pip.

And here are some other heroes of ours, though many of them we do NOT love for their names. Working backwards in time: Brother Andrew, Sophie Scholl, Francis + Edith Schaeffer, Irene Sendler, CS Lewis + Joy Davidman, Corrie Ten Boom, JRR Tolkien, GK Chesterton, Jane Austen, William Wilberforce, John Adams, Blaise Pascal, JS Bach, Lady Jane Grey, John Calvin… and the list could go on another 3000 years back, but that would maybe steal the fun of asking for your help!

Feel free to make any of these names sound good in your suggestions, as a brother to Wyc.

Some Guides

  • We’re especially looking for heroes in the Christian tradition. Could be from any branch of Christianity. But we’re from a reformed background, so someone strongly associated with another branch, like a pope, is probably not going to be a winner. As much as we like JPII, we wouldn’t name a kid after him.

  • We’re especially NOT looking for anyone overtly politicised right now. If the name is a political football for partisan bickering currently, NO. We’re not interested.

  • But the name could be from any field - arts, sciences, ministers, brave ordinary folks, royals, even political heroes from further back.

  • As a hero, they need to have done something that tremendously blessed other humans — making life more beautiful, removing a real evil, bringing freedom to the oppressed, dying or living to save others, etc.

  • There are many people who did great good, but also did great evil, or actually lived quite horrible lives in private. We’re not seeking those names. Especially no sexual abuse. Please do not suggest someone who was likely involved in any sort of sexual abuse. We will not be using such a name.

Final Words
Hopefully those aren’t too many restrictions. A good hero can be hard to find.

Really, just want a good hero name that pairs well with Wyc.

Last thing - I’ve mentioned some female names above. We’d be totally open to honouring an awesome female hero in a future son’s name — by using a surname or converting a female name to a male name.

Thanks tonnes for any suggestions!!!

Ok, I’m not a [name_u]Christian[/name_u], so I don’t know that I have too many new ideas. But working within the list you already have…

Phillip: First, this is a great idea, and I don’t think it’s too much of a dad name. I rarely hear it on people of any age. [name_u]Pip[/name_u] is great.

Caspian: Obviously for CS [name_m]Lewis[/name_m], though it’s a beautiful name of its own accord. It’s quickly rising in popularity in the US, though, which might not be your thing. (Maybe it’s rarer in Australia?) I love [name_m]Cas[/name_m] or [name_m]Cap[/name_m] as potential nicknames to match Wyc.

Peregrine: This name always reminds me of Tolkien, because it’s [name_u]Pippin[/name_u]’s full name (you could still use the nickname [name_u]Pip[/name_u]!). But the literal meaning is “pilgrim” which might be a nice tie-in to your religious background, as well. And it would match [name_f]Cora[/name_f]’s name meaning! Also, another nature connection through the falcon, which I love.

Chesterton: This one could work well on its own with the right nickname. I like the idea of [name_m]Chet[/name_m]. Maybe Ches? [name_m]Calvin[/name_m] and [name_u]Austen[/name_u] work well on their own, too, but they’re a little boring.

Alban [name_m]Rhodes[/name_m]: Ok, this is out there. But I like the idea of combining names with “white” and “rose” meanings to honor The White [name_f]Rose[/name_f] organization and brave [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] Scholl. [name_m]Gavin[/name_m] and [name_m]Whittaker[/name_m] also have “white” meanings, but [name_u]Whit[/name_u] might be too close to Wyc.

Brandenburg: Now I’m just having fun and being kind of silly! But since one of [name_m]Bach[/name_m]’s most famous pieces is the Brandenburg concertos… nickname [name_u]Bran[/name_u]. :laughing:

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It seems like you are looking for real life heroes but if you’re also open to fictional ones I’d like to suggest Samwise because you mentioned Tolkien. [name_u]Sam[/name_u] is a wonderful character: very loyal, brave and good at heart.

Cosmas/Damian: [name_m]Cosmas[/name_m] and his twin brother [name_m]Damian[/name_m] were Arabian physicians and martyrs.

Galilleo: [name_m]Galileo[/name_m] Galilei

Desiderius [name_m]Erasmus[/name_m]

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The name that really stood out to me was [name_f]Sophie[/name_f] scholl. Maybe something like Scholler? (Skoaler) I think it would sound really good with Wyc.

But also, I do think [name_m]Philip[/name_m] is due for a name revival anyway she doesn’t scream dad to be, especially with the nickname [name_u]Pip[/name_u].

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I’m not sure about [name_u]Christian[/name_u] names, but there was an artist called M.C.[name_m]Escher[/name_m] who’s art I think fits your category of making life more beautiful. He was also hugely disinterested in politics, but refused to support Mussolini when he and his family lived in [name_f]Italy[/name_f]. He also designed a charity stamp for the postal service in the Netherlands, so I think that probably counts towards the hero part. I think [name_m]Escher[/name_m]/Esher would work really well with Wyc, particularly as it shares a sound with [name_u]Asher[/name_u] (which is definitely more [name_u]Christian[/name_u]!)

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Thank you all!

@QuirkFlower — I’m so extremely grateful for how much time you took with this, reflecting so deeply on our heroes and our kids’ names to give us some fantastic, and very fitting suggestions. Thank you! I should add — Peregrine is definitely a fitting name for us, but a very close friend has already used that name for a son.

@Johannaa — I love how you went broad and deep with the prompt! [name_m]Samwise[/name_m] is definitely a hero, whom we love - though I don’t know if it would be fair to name Wyc’s brother [name_u]Sam[/name_u]. Somehow I’d missed the story of [name_m]Cosmas[/name_m] and [name_m]Damian[/name_m] — so thank you for the introduction! Reminded me of two other heroes of ours — [name_m]Cyril[/name_m] and Methodius, brothers who battled the church for permission to do the first Slavic translation of the Bible in 800’s.

@Lauralee835 — thanks for giving us confidence with [name_u]Pip[/name_u]! I don’t know if I’m confident enough for Scholler — I’d want to pronounce it with a [name_m]German[/name_m] accent, and be disappointed at everyone pronouncing it with an Aussie / [name_f]English[/name_f] accent.

@lyrasoxford — I’ve always been a huge fan of [name_m]Escher[/name_m]'s work. I don’t actually know anything about his life. But you’ve prompted me to look into it! Thanks!

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I should add, if you’re thinking about commenting still, you’re definitely free to suggest fictional heroes. And again, welcome to comment whatever your background.

If the “reformed background” comment is a hang up, ignore it. To simplify extremely, roughly all Christians till the 1500’s could be taken as part of this tradition (as well as being part of other traditions), and after that it gets a bit more complicated. But any hero suggestions are welcome.

I think I’d have to go away and actually do some research to come up with a good list.
The one thing I will suggest is, if you like King Alfred you could always use the Germanic form of his name which is Aelfraed? That way you would avoid the nicknames of the name that you do not particularly like perhaps?

Oh and Constantine the great: first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. I love the name Constantine.

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I’ve thought about that with [name_m]Alfred[/name_m], b/c we actually like that spelling and pronunciation a lot more — Ælfræd— but it would be a headache with anything official.

[name_u]Constantine[/name_u] is one of those characters that everyone loves to debate. It’s sort of a dead even split between those I know whether they think [name_u]Constantine[/name_u] was the hero or the villain in the piece. I think he was a bit of both.

So far, of the suggestions above, [name_m]Philip[/name_m], [name_m]Caspian[/name_m], and [name_m]Galileo[/name_m] are great. Also really like the [name_u]Peregrine[/name_u] nn [name_u]Pippin[/name_u], Chesterton nn [name_m]Chet[/name_m], and [name_m]Samwise[/name_m], and [name_m]Cosmas[/name_m], but realistically couldn’t or wouldn’t use, for various reasons.

But now also thinking heavily about [name_m]Cyril[/name_m], from the comment above. Would it be odd to have a Wyc and a [name_m]Cy[/name_m]? Taking in mind the faint possibility of a later boy who didn’t have a y in his name?

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Dang, [name_u]Peregrine[/name_u] was my favorite of this morning’s suggestions! I’ve been contemplating this little puzzle all day, and I’m back with a few more random suggestions.

Jonas Salk - Jewish, not [name_u]Christian[/name_u], but worthy of inclusion on your heroes list, and especially timely in this season of pandemic. He created the polio vaccine and chose not to patent it or profit from it. [name_u]Truly[/name_u] selfless pursuit of public health. Also, I love that [name_m]Jonas[/name_m] means “dove.”

Christopher [name_u]Wren[/name_u] - Architect, scientist, helped create the [name_u]Royal[/name_u] Society to foster other young intellects. I briefly lived in [name_u]London[/name_u] and I loved visiting the [name_u]Wren[/name_u] churches. Also, admittedly, I like this one partially just for the sound of the name. The names together could mean something like “little bird of [name_m]Christ[/name_m]” which is just sweet. Nickname [name_u]Kit[/name_u] or [name_m]Kip[/name_m] would be nice. Or I like the idea of calling him [name_u]Wren[/name_u] to match the W in Wyc.

Loveday - This is an odd one, but I was thinking about Medieval history while trying to brainstorm names for you and I remembered how much I like [name_u]Loveday[/name_u] as a middle name. “[name_u]Love[/name_u] Days” were days when conflicts could be resolved by mediation rather than going to court, and were sometimes used for diplomatic negotiation to prevent violence. It’s a bit left-field, but it seemed like it might be up your alley.

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I wish I could heart your comment more than once. I love these suggestions. All of them, esp Jonas and Wren. You reminded me also of [name_m]Faraday[/name_m] and of [name_m]Louis[/name_m] Pasteur who is also a hero of ours. Although we have alternative friends from various religious and ethical backgrounds who’d be less keen on that reference, we think he’s pretty awesome.

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This kind of challenge is up my alley…I hope! I’m a Catholic [name_u]Christian[/name_u] so I’m more familiar with saints like [name_u]Flannery[/name_u] O’[name_u]Connor[/name_u], [name_f]Therese[/name_f] de Lisieux and JPII, but here’s some suggestions!

Tyndale, after [name_m]William[/name_m] Tyndale, who left [name_f]England[/name_f] to produce the first [name_f]English[/name_f] Bible at a time when it was illegal.

Spurgeon, for [name_m]Charles[/name_m] [name_m]Spurgeon[/name_m] the prince of preachers. Admittedly I’m not a huge fan of this name, the Spurge part isn’t so appealing, that being said [name_m]Geo[/name_m] could be a cute nickname.

How about the name Tolkien itself? I think it’s a great unexpected choice. [name_m]Tolly[/name_m] or Kien as potential nicknames could make it more accessible. Some other [name_m]Lord[/name_m] of the Rings names could include [name_m]Meriadoc[/name_m], Aragorn, and [name_m]Theoden[/name_m].

CS [name_m]Lewis[/name_m], if you’re not a fan of [name_m]Lewis[/name_m] have you considered [name_m]Clive[/name_m], his first name? I for one would love to hear of a little [name_m]Clive[/name_m]. More [name_f]Narnia[/name_f] names can include [name_u]Pevensie[/name_u], [name_f]Rilian[/name_f], and [name_m]Aslan[/name_m]. I really love the above suggestion of [name_m]Caspian[/name_m] too.

This one may be too Catholic but [name_m]Maximilien[/name_m] Kolbe (pronounced [name_m]Cole[/name_m]-bay)? He was a polish friar who issued many anti-Nazi publications during WW2. He was eventually arrested and brought to Auschwitz where he volunteered to die by lethal injection in the place of another man who had a family. Another famous anti-Nazi [name_u]Christian[/name_u] hero was [name_m]Dietrich[/name_m] Bonhoeffer.

If you’re considering Biblical heroes like [name_m]Phillip[/name_m], what about [name_u]Aquila[/name_u], [name_m]Matthias[/name_m], or [name_m]Cornelius[/name_m] (you could use [name_u]Corrie[/name_u] as an nn to honour [name_u]Corrie[/name_u] Ten Boom)

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Excellent suggestions! This is right up your alley.

I’m so stoked at having taken the plunge and asked, and gotten such great feedback!

I’ve thought about Tyndale. You could almost have a set of translator heroes — [name_m]Wycliffe[/name_m], Tyndale, [name_m]Cyril[/name_m]. Wyc, Tyn, [name_m]Cy[/name_m]. I don’t know if I love the name Tyndale enough… but that set idea… :nerd_face:

Tolkien / Tollers could work. [name_f]My[/name_f] wife said the same at lunch today. I don’t know about [name_m]Clive[/name_m] and [name_m]Spurgeon[/name_m]. But [name_m]Cornelius[/name_m], as a double honour, could be awesome.

Thanks for those and each of the other great suggestions! Looking forward to sharing them with my wife later today.

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My wife has dq-d most of the names I liked as impractical for various reasons. And she really dislikes [name_m]Cyril[/name_m]. “Sounds like syrupy girl squirrel cereal.” Or “A fellow in a [name_u]Noel[/name_u] Coward play that someone is shrieking at in an upper class British accent.” I’m not going to win this one.

Winners for her are [name_u]Peregrine[/name_u], [name_u]Blaise[/name_u], [name_m]Pascal[/name_m] and [name_m]Lewis[/name_m]. [name_f]May[/name_f] need to work on our friend to get the use of [name_u]Peregrine[/name_u]. Also, she likes [name_u]Ridley[/name_u], and Latimer. Not sure what I think about Latimer.

What about [name_m]Knox[/name_m]? I knowJohn [name_m]Knox[/name_m] was a reformed [name_u]Christian[/name_u] leader, although I don’t know the details of his life, and I think [name_m]Knox[/name_m] is cool-sounding like Wyc/Wycliffe…(which I love so much by the way!)

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What about [name_m]John[/name_m] Hus. He was great [name_u]Christian[/name_u] who caused a huge stir in his country [name_f]Bohemia[/name_f] (?) about 100 years before the Reformation. Possibly you could use Hus as his name. [name_m]John[/name_m] is great too, but sounds rather bland compared to wyc and Hus.

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I also like [name_m]Graham[/name_m], as in evangelist [name_u]Billy[/name_u] [name_m]Graham[/name_m]. And [name_m]Patrick[/name_m], amazing story. Wyc and Patch?

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Hahaha, I have to say I agree about only being able to hear [name_m]Cyril[/name_m] in a shrieking posh accent. I like her short list!

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@Elizastory — [name_m]Knox[/name_m] would be a pretty sweet name. But he is one of those with a fairly up and down record. He’s definitely in the reformed tradition, founding the reformed church in [name_f]Scotland[/name_f] — but he was also a misogynist, who wrote a horrible pamphlet contra women, which angered Good [name_f]Queen[/name_f] [name_f]Bess[/name_f] so much as to make him her enemy for life and seriously stifle freedom of religion in [name_f]England[/name_f].

Patrick though was a pretty awesome fellow. I don’t love the nicknames though. But it would definitely work as a strong ‘unused’ middle. Not sure why we didn’t have it on a shortlist.

@Asherose — Hus was pretty cool. But I think Hus would be a tricky one to pull off with the word hussy being so close.

@QuirkFlower — I forgot to say that she also likes Chesterton, but not [name_m]Chet[/name_m].

Hi there! You do have a very intriguing, particular set of parameters in naming and I would love to make some suggestions for Wyc’s brother!

(I just need to make the disclaimer that [name_u]Christian[/name_u] Reformation is not my background nor speciality, so apologies if these are not fitting, as I’m not so sure on the history of their name sakes.)

Tyndale - after [name_m]William[/name_m] Tyndale; struggled a little with cool nicknames for this one but thought Wyc and Tyndale sounded like brothers :slight_smile: Maybe [name_m]Ty[/name_m]?

Waldo - after [name_m]Peter[/name_m] [name_m]Waldo[/name_m]; I think Wyc and [name_m]Waldo[/name_m] sound wonderful!

Albret - after [name_u]Jeanne[/name_u] d’Albret; since you like [name_m]Alfred[/name_m] but weren’t so keen on nicknames, maybe this could be a good alternative? [name_u]Bret[/name_u] and [name_m]Albie[/name_m] have a similar vibe to Wyc, I feel.

Erasmus - after [name_m]Erasmus[/name_m] Alber; whilst a little longer than Wyc, I think [name_m]Erasmus[/name_m] is an excellent, underused, classic name with real personality! It has a wonderful meaning (beloved) and you could use nn [name_m]Elmo[/name_m].

Osiander - after [name_m]Andreas[/name_m] Osiander; I think Osiander sounds so similar to several popular names, like [name_m]Oscar[/name_m] and [name_m]Alexander[/name_m], whilst being unique amongst them, I’m sure. Plus, there are so many nicknames with this one, like Osi, [name_m]Ander[/name_m], [name_u]Sandy[/name_u].

Brenz - after [name_m]Johannes[/name_m] Brenz; short, meaningful and to the point, like Wyc! I think Wyc and Brenz sound very cool as brothers! Brenz again sounds like several popular names, whilst still standing out.

Willems - after [name_m]Dirk[/name_m] Willems; I feel like as well as complimenting Wyc, Willems has a strong story of humility (from the brief reading I just did). Wyc and Willems definitely sound like brothers to me.

Luther - after [name_m]Martin[/name_m] [name_m]Luther[/name_m]; I feel like this is one of the most well known people associated with the Reformation so there are probably reasons why you haven’t considered this already but just thought I’d suggest just in case! I think Wyc and [name_m]Luther[/name_m] sound excellent together and [name_f]Lu[/name_f] is adorable.

I hope these are in the region of what you’re looking for! Very good luck with your search, I know your son will have a name full of meaning he can be proud of :blush:

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