What are your opinions on virtue names (such as [name_f]Patience[/name_f] or [name_u]Justice[/name_u])? Are they strong, meaningful names or just awkward?
What are some names that fit today’s age or your values? What are some that have gone out of fashion? Are there any you particularly like/hate?
For me, [name_f]Chastity[/name_f] and [name_f]Prudence[/name_f] are out of the running, but I see the appeal of [name_u]Justice[/name_u], [name_u]True[/name_u], and [name_f]Grace[/name_f].
Here are some of my favorites!
Boys:
[name_u]Valor[/name_u]
[name_u]Noble[/name_u]
[name_u]Brave[/name_u]
Unisex:
[name_u]Honor[/name_u]
[name_u]Sage[/name_u]
[name_f]Blessing[/name_f]
Girls:
[name_f]Charity[/name_f]
[name_f]Grace[/name_f]
[name_f]Joy[/name_f]
[name_f]Patience[/name_f]
[name_f]Glory[/name_f]
[name_f]Blythe[/name_f]
[name_f]Hope[/name_f]
[name_f]My[/name_f] favorites are:
[name_f]Hope[/name_f]
[name_u]Honor[/name_u]
[name_u]Haven[/name_u]
[name_u]Sage[/name_u]
[name_f]Joy[/name_f] (girls only)
[name_f]My[/name_f] daughters mn is [name_f]Blessing[/name_f]. With the way girls can be so hard on themselves and each other these days I told my husband it was important my daughter have a name she can look on and know that she is valued.
Other virtue names I like are [name_u]Peace[/name_u], [name_f]Grace[/name_f], [name_f]Joy[/name_f], [name_u]Love[/name_u], [name_f]Faith[/name_f], [name_u]Justice[/name_u], [name_u]Truth[/name_u], [name_u]Honor[/name_u] and [name_f]Hope[/name_f].
I considered [name_f]Patience[/name_f] as a potential first name briefly and like the way how it sounds I just can’t help but think that’s a name that can come back at you when you’re less then your namesake.
Typically I’m more drawn to virtue names as middles. And it’s hard for me to find a many virtue names for boys that I actually like or could consider usable.
That’s a very sweet middle name. [name_f]My[/name_f] friend’s middle name growing up was [name_f]Joy[/name_f] for the same reason.
I agree that especially as a first name, virtue names have the potential to be something to live up to.
For boys it is harder. I think [name_u]Justice[/name_u] could work for either, [name_u]True[/name_u] might work, as well as [name_m]Earnest[/name_m] or [name_m]Just[/name_m], and [name_m]Felix[/name_m] is a near virtue name. Thanks for your thoughts!
I really like [name_f]Verity[/name_f] and [name_f]Felicity[/name_f] for girls. They sound like beautiful, elegant names to me. I quite like [name_f]Patience[/name_f], [name_f]Mercy[/name_f] and [name_f]Amity[/name_f] too (if only people wouldn’t bring up the Amityville Horror). I’m more drawn to word names when the words are less commonly used. I prefer [name_f]Verity[/name_f] to [name_u]Truth[/name_u] for example.
For boys, [name_m]Prosper[/name_m] and [name_u]Justice[/name_u] are interesting, but it’s harder for me to think of virtue names that I really like for boys.
I really love the idea of virtue names as middles, and I think they can definitely work well as firsts once they’ve become familiar as names. I do think some virtue names can feel like a lot to live up to, so I tend to be a little cautious of that. The more established something becomes as a widely-used name, the less that seems to bother me.
I think virtue names can be beautiful and deeply meaningful. Some are more cut-out to be first names, and many can be middles.
I love [name_f]Clemency[/name_f] for a girl.
Other favorites:
[name_u]True[/name_u]
[name_f]Amity[/name_f]
[name_f]Glory[/name_f]
[name_f]Faith[/name_f]
[name_f]Verity[/name_f]
[name_f]Soul[/name_f]
I like some of them, but mostly those with positive meanings within today’s context. [name_f]Temperance[/name_f] and [name_f]Chastity[/name_f] just feel mean to me whereas [name_f]Faith[/name_f], [name_f]Amity[/name_f], [name_f]Verity[/name_f], [name_f]Constance[/name_f] etc all feel positive
I didn’t use to like virtue names at all, but I’ve definitely come round to a lot of them. There are some that I still really don’t like and could be uncomfortable today, like [name_f]Chastity[/name_f], [name_f]Modesty[/name_f] etc, and a lot are more suited as middles as they can be hard to live up to. But I adore [name_f]Amity[/name_f], [name_f]Felicity[/name_f], [name_u]Bright[/name_u], and it’s always nice to use a name that has a lot of positive meaning.
I prefer virtue names in the middle spot. For girls I like: [name_f]Clarity[/name_f], [name_f]Honesty[/name_f], [name_f]Serenity[/name_f], [name_f]Mercy[/name_f] and [name_f]Temperance[/name_f]. For boys I like: [name_m]Able[/name_m], Courage, Diligence, [name_u]Sincere[/name_u], and [name_u]Wisdom[/name_u].
When my aunt and uncle did our family geneology I saw that one of my great grandmothers was named [name_f]Mercy[/name_f] [name_f]Jane[/name_f]. I love the name, but I’m not sure if I will use it. It will definitely be on the table someday.
I met someone with the name [name_u]Zeal[/name_u] (girl) once, which I loved, but I’m not sure if that is considered a virtue name or not. I would use it, but is sounds awful with our last name.
Not sure if this would count as a virtue name, but it is similar to some of the names you listed:
I love [name_f]Hosanna[/name_f] as a name for a girl. I would even consider [name_f]Hosanna[/name_f] [name_f]Joy[/name_f]. It is a nice mix of [name_f]Hannah[/name_f] and [name_f]Susannah[/name_f] and almost seems like a girl version of [name_m]Hosea[/name_m]. I’m not sure my husband will love it as much as I do, and there are potentially bad nicknames.
What do you think?
That is reassuring! I’m afraid to ask my husband because we aren’t even trying to conceive at the moment and I don’t want him to shoot down a name I’ve loved for awhile. I want to enjoy the thought of it for now, haha. We have been married for 6 months. I’ve always loved baby names and I can’t wait until we start trying to conceive!
I agree; names adjust along with our values and culture. Those are some lovely names!
Great choices!
@cloverstuart That’s a very sweet family name. [name_u]Zeal[/name_u] is also something I haven’t heard before!
On the general whole, I can’t get behind using virtue names just because they are virtue names, but I have come around to many of them. If they hold significance for other reason besides being a virtue name (i.e. naming a girl [name_f]Grace[/name_f] because of its connection to someone in your life you want to honor), then I can definitely appreciate the use more.
Either way, I would definitely say that paying attention to the full name is important with some of the virtue names. For example, a virtue name in my family is Thâñkƒûł. I doubt we could get away with this one today, especially since she was born Thâñkƒûł Węęd and became Thâñkƒûł Ręęd when she married.
I have friends/know people with virtue names:
[name_f]Joy[/name_f]
[name_f]Grace[/name_f]
[name_f]Faith[/name_f]
[name_f]Felicity[/name_f]
but no boys sadly
I love virtue names!!! Some of my favorites are
girls:
[name_f]Clarity[/name_f]
[name_f]Grace[/name_f]
[name_f]Joy[/name_f]
[name_f]Liberty[/name_f]
[name_u]Brave[/name_u]
[name_f]Serenity[/name_f]
[name_u]Bliss[/name_u]
boys:
Perseverance
[name_u]Valiant[/name_u]
[name_u]Bravery[/name_u]
[name_u]Brave[/name_u]
[name_u]Valor[/name_u]
[name_u]Justice[/name_u]
[name_m]Clement[/name_m]
[name_u]Loyal[/name_u]
[name_u]Noble[/name_u]