160 Names That Mean Brave, Courageous, and Strong

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Naming expert Natalie Mulholland shares unique and classic names that mean “brave”
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Are you looking for a virtuous, heroic name that instills its owner with bravery? We’ve got you covered. From names that translate directly to “brave” to names that reflect a warrior’s courageous spirit, we partnered with a naming expert to compile an extensive collection of names to peruse. And whether you’re searching for feminine, masculine, or gender-neutral name ideas, you’re sure to find what you’re looking for here!

Best Examples of Names that Mean Brave

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Names That Mean Brave Summary

Naming expert Natalie Mulholland recommends the following feminine, masculine, and gender-neutral names meaning “brave:”

  • Girls: Bernadette, Valencia, Kinga, Rǫskva, Gasira
  • Boys: Archie, Bernard, Fergus, Wyatt, Conrad, Leonardo, Makoa
  • Unisex: Everett, Riley, Casey, Lenny, Jasiri
Section 1 of 7:

Girls’ Names that Mean “Brave”

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  1. We’ll start with traditionally feminine first names that translate to “brave” in their respective languages! If you need a girl’s name that conveys fearlessness and daring, take a look below:[1]
    • Agueda - Portuguese. Means “brave,” as well as “good, noble, virtuous.”
    • Alcestis - Greek. Means “brave, valiant.” A mythical Greek queen who sacrificed herself for her husband.
    • Amalaberga - Gothic. Derived from terms for “brave” (amals) and “protection” (bairgo).
    • Amalee - German. Means “brave, bold, mighty,” as well as “industrious.”
    • Amalia - Germanic. Derived from the element amal, meaning “vigorous, brave.”
    • Andrina - Greek. Means “brave,” as well as “manly” or “virile.”
    • Balthild - Germanic. Derived from bald (“brave”) and hilt (“battle”).
    • Bernadette[2] - French. Derived from Old Germanic, meaning “brave as a bear.”
    • Bernadine - French and Old German. Means “brave as a bear.”
    • Bernarda - Germanic. Feminine form of Bernard, meaning “brave as a bear.”
    • Brava - Esperanto. Means “brave” and “valiant.”
    • Delis - Latin, Greek, Turkish. Derived from the Turkish deli, which means “mad brave.”
    • Emmeline - English, Old French. Connected to the Germanic element amal, meaning “vigorous, brave.”
    • Eun-yeong - Korean. Means “kindness, mercy” (eun) and “flower, brave, hero” (yeong).
    • Fengying - Chinese. Means “phoenix” (feng) and “flower, brave, hero” (ying).
    • Freya - Norse. The Norse goddess of love, fertility, magic, and war, thus associated with bravery; the name translates to “noble lady.”
    • Gasira[3] - Swahili. Means “brave,” “one who is brave,” and “island, peninsula.”
    • Howardena - Old German. Means “high guardian” and “brave heart.”
    • Keena - Irish. A name with Celtic roots meaning “brave.”
    • Kelsa - Old English. Means “brave” and “victorious ship.”
    • Leona - Latin. Means “lioness” (as a variant of “Leon”).
    • Leopoldine - French, German. Means “brave people.”
    • Māia - Māori. Means “brave” and “capable.”
    • Melicent - English, German. Means “brave strength.”
    • Meline - French. Means “brave,” as well as “industrious, black, dark, honey.”
    • Nanna - Old Norse. Means “daring, brave”; also a Norse goddess of joy and devotion.
    • Rita - Sanskrit. Means “brave, honest.” Its Spanish and Greek meaning is “pearl.”
    • Rǫskva[4] - Old Norse. Means “brave” and “vigorous.”
    • Thora - Old Norse. Means “thunder”; feminine form of Thor, the Norse god of thunder.
    • Valeria - Latin. Means “brave,” “to be strong,” or “healthy.”
    • Valora - Latin. Means “brave, courageous.”

    Meet the wikiHow Expert

    Natalie Mulholland is a naming expert and content creator who focuses on sharing a name’s origin, meaning, category, notable people, and more.

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Section 2 of 7:

Boys’ Names that Mean “Brave”

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  1. Next, here are all the traditionally masculine names that mean “brave.” Quite a few of them have Germanic origins, although—as you’ll see below—we’ve pulled options from around the world:
    • Abhimanyu - Sanskrit. Means “heroic, brave, fiery.”
    • Adalhard - Germanic. Derived from terms for “noble” (adal) and “brave, firm” (hart).
    • Allard - French, English. Means “noble,” “brave,” and “bold.”
    • Archibald[5] - Scottish. Derived from words for “master” (archos) and “bold, brave” (bald).
    • Archie[6] - German. Means “genuinely bold” and “brave.”
    • Aveer - Sanskrit. Means “brave,” as well as “strong, valiant.”
    • Baldric - Old German. Means “bold, brave” (bald) and “ruler” (ric).
    • Basil - Arabic. Means “brave” and “valiant.”
    • Batraz - Turkish, Ossetian. Means “hero, brave.”
    • Bernard[7] - French, Dutch, Old German. Means “brave as a bear” or “brave bear.”
    • Bernardo - German, Italian, Spanish. Means “brave as a bear.”
    • Cal - Hebrew. Means “devotion,” “faithful,” and “brave.”
    • Con - Irish. Means “brave,” as well as “hound” or “wolf.”
    • Cort - German. A shortened form of Konrad, meaning “brave counsel.”
    • Decebal - Romanian. Means “powerful” and “brave.”
    • Dilovar - Tajik. Means “brave.”
    • Eberhard - German. Means “brave boar.”
    • Erlan - Turkish, Kazakh. Means “hero, brave” (er) and “young man” (lan).
    • Fergus[8] - Celtic. Means “man of strength” or “man of vigor.”
    • Hào - Vietnamese. Means “brave” or “heroic.”
    • Hubbell - German, Anglo-Saxon. Means “brave heart” or “brave mind.”
    • Isamu - Japanese. Means “brave.”
    • Jerrick - English, German. Means “brave ruler” or “people-ruler.”
    • Kenelm - Old English. Means “brave helmet” or “bold helmet.”
    • Lenn - German, Dutch. Means “brave lion” or “hardy lion.”
    • Leonard - German, English, Dutch. Means “brave lion.”
    • Leonardo[9] - German. Means “lion-hearted” or “brave as a lion.”
    • Leopold[10] - German. Means “brave people” or “bold people.”
    • Loewy - German, Swiss. Means “lion.”
    • Makoa[11] - Hawaiian. Means “brave,” as well as “fearless, bold man.”
    • Mert - Turkish. Means “brave” and “manly.”
    • Reinhardt - German. Means “brave counsel.”
    • Reynard - English. Variant of Reinardt, also meaning “brave counsel.”
    • Ruiseart - Scottish, Gaelic. Variant of Richard, meaning “brave ruler.”
    • Taner - Turkish. Means “dawn” and “brave, hero.”
    • Thorin - Old Norse, Swedish. Means “thunder fighter.”
    • Veer - Sanskrit. Means “brave,” and “courageous.”
    • Willard - German. Means “will, desire” and “brave, bold.”
    • Wolfhard - German. Means “wolf” and “brave, hardy.”
    • Xerxes - Greek, Persian. Means “hero among kings.”
    • Yuichi - Japanese. Means “brave, courageous,” as well as “kind, abundant, first.”
    • Yusuke - Japanese. Means “brave, courage” and “to help.”
    • Yūta - Japanese. Means “excellence, brave” (yu) and “great, big” (ta).
Section 3 of 7:

Gender-Neutral Names that Mean “Brave”

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  1. Who’s to say a name has to be strictly for men or women? We’ve collected some bravery-themed names that don’t have a specific gender association—they’ll work for anyone (and, hopefully, imbue them with a strong will and a heart of gold!)
    • Andrea - Greek. Means “virile,” although it’s also associated with “brave” and “strong.”
    • Anh - Vietnamese. It can mean “brave,” “hero,” “flower,” and “petal.”
    • Ari - Armenian. Means “brave.”
    • Bernie - Old German. Means “brave as a bear” or “brave bear.”
    • Emersyn - English, German. Means “brave, ruler of the home, vigor, diligent.”
    • Jasiri[12] - Swahili. Means “bold, brave” or “courageous.”
    • Jigme - Tibetan. Means “brave” and “fearless.”
    • Koa - Hawaiian. Means “valiant one” or “warrior.”
    • Quinn - Irish. Means “chief, leader” or “wisdom.”
    • Riley[13] - Irish. Modernization of the surname Ó Raghallaigh, which means “brave.”
    • Tierney - Irish. Means “noble, lord, lordly.”
    • Trace - Irish, English. Means “brave,” as well as “warlike” or “fierce.”
    • Wyatt[14] - German, Old English. Means “brave, hardy” as well as “strong fighter.”
    • Valiant - English. An English word meaning “brave” or “courageous.”
    • Ying - Chinese. Means “hero,” as well as “flower, petal, hero.”
    • Yong - Chinese, Korean. It can mean “brave” or “perpetual, eternal.”
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Section 4 of 7:

Most Popular Names Meaning “Brave”

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  1. These are among the “top” names that mean brave—the more mainstream ones that you’ve probably encountered before, even if you didn’t know what they meant! Take a look at the most popular bravery-themed names:
    • Casey[15] - Irish (unisex). Means “brave” as well as “watchful, vigilant.”
    • Conrad[16] - German (masculine). Means “brave counsel.”
    • Emerson - German (unisex). Means “brave, powerful” and “child of Emery.”
    • Everett[17] - German (masculine). Means “brave as a boar” or “brave boar.”
    • Garrett - German (masculine). Means “brave,” and “spear ruler.”
    • Gerard - German (masculine). Means “spear ruler” or “brave spearman.”
    • Lenny[19] - German (unisex). Related to the German Leonard, meaning “brave as a lion.”
    • Melina - Greek, German (feminine). Its German roots mean “bravery”; its Greek roots mean “honey.”
    • Milly - Latin, German, French (feminine). Its German roots mean “brave, diligent.”
    • Richard - German (masculine). Means “powerful,” “brave,” “hardy,” and “strong ruler.”
    • Theo - Greek, German (unisex). In German, the name comes from Theobald, meaning “brave people.” In Greek, it means “God’s gift.”
Section 5 of 7:

Last Names that Mean “Brave”

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  1. Curious about surnames meaning brave? Well, they definitely exist—although some of them have also become usable as first names! Here are some of the more common last names that convey strength and bravery:
    • Baldwin - English, German. Means “brave friend”; can also be a masculine first name.
    • Donnelly - Irish, Gaelic. Means “dark brave one” or “brown-haired chieftan”; also a masculine first name.
    • Ferguson - Irish, Gaelic. Means “son of Fergus”; derived from the elements “man” (fear) and “strength, vigor” (gus).
    • Garvin - Irish, Old English. Means “rugged” or “spear friend.”
    • Gifford - English, French. Means “brave giver”; can also be a masculine first name.
    • Hardy - German. Means “bold, brave”; can also be a masculine first name.
    • Howard[20] - German, Old Norse. Means “heart-brave” or “high guardian.”
    • O’Donnell - Irish. Means “world-ruler” or “world mighty.”
    • Prewitt - Old French. Means “brave little one”; can also a masculine first name.
    • Ritter - German. Means “mounted warrior” or “knight.”
    • Rodriguez - Spanish. Means “son of Rodrigo”; Rodrigo is a name meaning “renowned power” or “famous ruler.”
    • Rogers - German. Means “famous spearman” or “famous warrior.”
    • Strong - English. Refers to strength, might, and power.
    • Ward - English. Means “watchman” or “guardian.”
    • Warner - German, French. Means “protection” or “protective guard.”
    • Warren - French. Means “to protect” or “guard”; also a masculine first name.
    • Wilkins - German. Related to the name William, meaning “resolute protector.”
    • Williams - German. Also related to the name William, meaning “resolute protector.”
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Section 6 of 7:

Names that Mean Brave Warrior

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  1. We often associate warriors with bravery, right? After all, it takes courage to fight any battle, whether it’s physical, mental, or otherwise. With that in mind, here are some name suggestions for all the strong-willed warriors of the world:[22]
    • Alper - Turkish (masculine). Means “brave, hero” (alp) and “man, hero” (er).
    • Alperen - Turkish (masculine). Means “fighter,” derived from the elements for “brave, hero” and “holy person.”
    • Anders - Greek (masculine). Means "warrior," as well as “manly” and “courageous.”
    • Andrei - Romanian. Means “warrior, manly, strong, courageous.”
    • Callen - Irish, Gaelic (unisex). Means “powerful in battle.”
    • Donovan - Irish (masculine). Means “dark warrior” or “brown-haired chieftain.”
    • Dustin[23] - Old Norse (masculine). Means “Thor’s stone,” “thunderstone,” or “brave warrior.”
    • Evander - Greek, Roman (masculine). Means “strong man” or “good man.”
    • Finley - Irish, Scottish (unisex). Means “fair-haired warrior.”
    • Harvinder - Sanskrit (masculine). Means “brave warrior of God” or “lord of Heaven.”
    • Harvey - German (masculine). Means “army warrior” or “battle worthy.”
    • Harwinder - Sanskrit (masculine). Means “brave warrior of God” or “lord of Heaven.”
    • Helmut - German (masculine). Means “protection” and “fighting spirit.”
    • Kinga[24] - German (feminine), Hungarian, Polish (feminine). Means “brave in war” and “battle.”
    • Lewis - German, English (masculine). Means “renowned warrior” or “famous in battle.”
    • Lyon - Spanish, Greek (masculine). Its Spanish meaning is “brave warrior”; it means “lion” in Greek.
    • Moja - Norwegian, Greek (feminine). Means “brave warrior” and “great, mother.”
    • Niall - Irish (masculine). Means “champion” and “victory.”
    • Patton - English, Irish (masculine). Means “nobleman” or “warrior’s town.”
    • Roger - German, Old French (masculine). Means “famous warrior.”
    • Roderick - German (masculine). Means “ruler” and “glory.”
    • Ryder - German (unisex). Means “mounded warrior” or “horseman.”
    • Sloane - Irish (unisex). Means “warrior” or “raider.”
    • Zelda – German (feminine). Means “grey battle maid,” implying a brave warrior.
    • Zoravar - Persian. Means “powerful warrior” or “strong leader.”
Section 7 of 7:

Names that Mean Courage and Strength

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  1. Finally, let’s explore some names that are related to bravery, but don’t necessarily match the translation exactly. Below, we’ve compiled a list of names with themes of courage, strength, and power—all of those concepts often associated with bravery![25]
    • Abelardo - Spanish, Portuguese (masculine). Means “noble strength.”
    • Arnold - German (masculine). Means “eagle power” or “strong eagle.”
    • Audrey - Old English (feminine). Means “noble strength.”
    • Barrett - German, English (unisex). Means “bear strength.”
    • Brian - Irish (masculine). Means “high,” “noble,” or “might.”
    • Briana - Irish (feminine). Means “high,” “noble,” or "exalted."
    • Bryant - English (masculine). Means “honorable,” “virtuous,” or “strength.”
    • Evardo - Spanish (masculine). Means “strong boar.”
    • Ferdinand - German (masculine). Means “courageous traveler.”
    • Hector - Greek (masculine). Means “steadfast” or “to hold.”
    • Imara - Swahili (feminine). Means “strong,” as well as “firm, stable.”
    • Isa - Persian, German (feminine). Means “strong-willed,” and “pledged to God.”
    • Kenzo - Japanese (masculine). It can mean “wise” or “strong and healthy.”
    • Kuno - German (masculine). It can mean “bold,” “family,” or “clan.”
    • Lenart - German, Scandinavian (masculine). Means “lion strength.”
    • Matilda - German (feminine). Means “strength in battle.”
    • Maximus - Latin (masculine). Means “greatest.”
    • Nolan - Irish (unisex). Means “famous” and “noble.”
    • Rostam - Persian (masculine). Means “strong-bodied,” “hero,” or “river’s strength.”
    • Valencia[26] - Latin (feminine). Means “strong, healthy” or “to be worthy.”
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References

  1. ↑ https://www.momjunction.com/baby-names/meaning-brave/girl/
  2. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  3. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  4. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  5. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  6. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  7. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  8. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  9. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  1. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  2. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  3. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  4. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  5. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  6. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  7. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  8. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  9. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  10. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  11. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  12. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  13. ↑ https://parade.com/living/baby-names-that-mean-warrior
  14. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  15. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview
  16. ↑ https://www.southernliving.com/culture/names-that-mean-hope-strength
  17. ↑ Natalie Mulholland. Naming Expert. Expert Interview

About This Article

Natalie Mulholland
Co-authored by:
Natalie Mulholland
Naming Expert
This article was co-authored by Natalie Mulholland and by wikiHow staff writer, Glenn Carreau. Natalie Mulholland is a naming expert and content creator based in Athens, Georgia. With a lifelong interest in names, Natalie started creating content around this passion in 2023. She brings a linguistically focused approach to her content, sharing a name’s origin, meaning, category, notable people, and more. She is expecting to receive her bachelor’s degree in human development and family science from the University of Georgia in 2025.
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Co-authors: 2
Updated: August 3, 2026
Categories: Naming a Baby
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