Victorian Boys' Names: Vintage, Classic, Old Fashioned Names

Sep 26, 2010
Fleur Hupston

Victorian Picture - fayecor

Looking for a vintage name for your baby boy? Taking a look at some of the classic Victorian names and their meanings can make the choice less confusing.

Thinking of a Victorian, classic name for your baby boy? Take a look at some boys' names from the past to find an unusual but popular name for a new baby boy.

Parents in Victorian times liked to give their children names that were popular in the Middle Ages. French and German names were also popular, as were names from other European countries.

Many boys' names were derived from literature that was popular at the time, such as those written by Charles Dickens and and names were also borrowed from books on mythology, such as Hector and Ulysses. Victorian English baby names were often borrowed from the literature at the time and as such, books written by authors such as the Bronte Sisters, Charles Dickens, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Rudyard Kipling, and George Eliot. The names of the characters who appeared in the books saw rising popularity.

Dark, Gothic Victorian Boys' Names

The Victorian era popularised scary, dark stories of murder and mayhem. As such, the boys' names that follow were popular at the time.

Balthazar: Splendid prince
Dorian: From Oscar Wilde's fictional story "The Portrait of Dorian Gray"
Gerard: Means brave spear man
Judas: Meaning praise, thanks
Percival: Origin Welsh, meaning obscure
Regulus: Latin origin – meaning ruler
Remus: Meaning unknown
Reginald: Meaning king
Salazar: Means “old hall”
Sirius: A star in the constellation Canis Major, may mean sparkling or scorching.
William: Means strong-willed warrior

Victorian Boys' Names From the Bible

Many Victorian names originated from the bible and were widely used at the time. Some popular boys' biblical names, in alphabetical order, are as follows:

Aaron, Abel, Abraham, Amos, Barnabas, Boaz, Caleb, Enoch, Ezekiel, Ezra, Felix, Gabriel, Isaac, Isaiah, Jacob, James, Heremial, Judah, Luke, Malachi, Micah, Nathaniel, Paul, Peter, Phineas, Reuben, Samuel, Saul, Simeon, Thomas, Titus, Tobias, Uriah, Zacharias, Zebediah.

More Victorian Boys' Names

In some names, the first and middle name fused together to form a single first name. For example, Tobias-Henry were first names in which the first and middle name were fused together. This baby naming practice appeared in multiple times in Victorian public records.

The royalty, and religious/political leaders also influenced baby boys' names. Some royal Victorian boys' names included Albert, Edward, George, James and William. More Victorian names are as follows: