Okay so you want your son to have a name that means prince. And honestly? Same.
There is something about a name that carries royal meaning that just feels right from the very first time you say it out loud. Not over the top. Not trying too hard. Just a name that quietly tells the world this kid arrived with something special.
I went deep on this one. Names that literally mean prince. Names tied to royalty across different cultures and languages. Some you already know and love. Some are going to completely surprise you.
Every single name on this list carries that royal quality — the kind that grows with your son from the moment you put it on the birth certificate all the way to whenever he walks into a room as a grown man and owns it.
Let’s find him his name.
Baby Boy Names Meaning Prince: Classic Royal Picks
These are the names that have carried royal meaning for centuries. Old world, grounded, and full of a dignity that never goes out of style.
Some of these have been on thrones. Some carried royal meaning in languages most people never think to look. All of them are worth your attention.
1. Basil
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: King, royal, kingly
From the Greek basileus meaning king. Basil was carried by Byzantine emperors and saints and has a warm, slightly unexpected quality that makes it feel completely fresh today.
2. Brendan
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Prince, little raven
Irish in origin and carrying a princely quality through Celtic tradition. Brendan is warm, classic, and one of the great Irish names that deserves far more attention than it gets.
3. Calogero
- Origin: Greek / Italian
- Meaning: Beautiful ruler, good elder
Carried in Sicilian and Southern Italian tradition. Calogero is unusual, warm, and carrying a beautiful Mediterranean royal quality.
4. Czar
- Origin: Latin / Slavic
- Meaning: Emperor, ruler, caesar
Directly from the title of Russian emperors. Czar is bold, short, and carries an imperial weight that is impossible to ignore.
5. Donald
- Origin: Scottish / Gaelic
- Meaning: World ruler, great chief
From the Gaelic Domhnall meaning world ruler. Donald was carried by Scottish kings and chieftains and has a warm, grounded quality that its royal history richly deserves.
6. Dragan
- Origin: Slavic
- Meaning: Precious, dear prince
Carried across Slavic royal tradition. Dragan is unusual in English-speaking countries and carries a warm, distinctive quality.
7. Eric
- Origin: Old Norse
- Meaning: Ever ruler, eternal ruler
Carried by Viking kings across Scandinavia. Eric is short, clean, and carrying a Norse royal heritage that has never gone out of style.
8. Ethan
- Origin: Hebrew
- Meaning: Strong, firm, enduring
Enduring strength that suits a boy who will carry himself like royalty without ever needing to announce it.
9. Griffith
- Origin: Welsh
- Meaning: Strong lord, prince
Carried by Welsh princes across medieval history. Griffith is warm, distinctive, and deeply rooted in Celtic royal tradition.
10. Henry
- Origin: Germanic
- Meaning: Home ruler, ruler of the household
Eight English kings carried this name. Henry is warm, strong, and carrying one of the richest royal histories of any name in the English language.
11. Idris
- Origin: Welsh / Arabic
- Meaning: Ardent lord, interpreter
Carried in Welsh mythology and Islamic tradition alike. Idris is warm, unusual, and crosses cultural lines in a way that feels completely natural.
12. Kingsley
- Origin: Old English
- Meaning: King’s meadow, from the king’s field
Royal meaning built right into the name. Kingsley is warm, grounded, and carries a distinguished English quality that suits this list well.
13. Kumar
- Origin: Sanskrit
- Meaning: Prince, boy, son
Directly means prince in Sanskrit. Kumar is widely used across South Asia and carries a warm, regal quality that belongs on this list.
14. Leroy
- Origin: Old French
- Meaning: The king
Literally means the king in Old French. Leroy is warm, punchy, and carrying a royal meaning in the most direct possible way.
15. Raj
- Origin: Sanskrit
- Meaning: King, prince, ruler
King and prince in Sanskrit. Short, warm, and carrying a South Asian royal heritage that belongs on any list of names meaning royalty.
16. Rajan
- Origin: Sanskrit
- Meaning: King, ruler, the one who shines
Raj with an extra warmth. Rajan is widely carried across South and Southeast Asia and has a beautiful, regal quality.
17. Rex
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: King
King in Latin. One syllable, zero ambiguity, enormous presence. Rex is bold, clean, and one of the most direct royal names in any language.
18. Roy
- Origin: Gaelic / Old French
- Meaning: Red king, king
Short, warm, and carrying a royal meaning across both Gaelic and French tradition. Roy is one of those names that sounds classic because it is.
19. Ryker
- Origin: Germanic / Dutch
- Meaning: Rich, powerful ruler
Modern and bold and carrying a powerful ruler meaning that suits a boy born to lead.
20. Vladislav
- Origin: Slavic
- Meaning: Glorious ruler, to rule with glory
Carried by kings and princes across Poland, Bohemia, and Russia. Long, distinguished, and full of Slavic royal heritage.
21. Warrick
- Origin: Old English / Germanic
- Meaning: Strong ruler, protecting ruler
Carried by English noble families and connected to the powerful Earls of Warwick. Warm, grounded, and distinctly English in its royal quality.
22. Zoltan
- Origin: Hungarian / Turkish
- Meaning: Sultan, ruler, prince
From the Turkish sultan meaning ruler. Zoltan is carried in Hungarian royal tradition and is bold, unusual, and completely distinctive in English-speaking countries.
Baby Boy Names Meaning Prince: Modern Royal Picks
These names carry the same royal energy but feel completely at home right now. Fresh, wearable, and full of that princely quality without sounding like they belong in a history textbook.
Every one of these works for a boy born today.
23. Amir
- Origin: Arabic / Hebrew
- Meaning: Prince, treetop, commander
Directly means prince in Arabic. Amir is warm, short, and widely carried across the Middle East, South Asia, and beyond — one of the most beautiful prince names in any language.
24. Arlo
- Origin: Old English / Spanish
- Meaning: Fortified hill — but carries a regal modern energy
Short, warm, and full of a quiet confidence that belongs on a boy who will carry himself like royalty without trying.
25. Caspian
- Origin: Place name / Geography
- Meaning: Named after the Caspian Sea
C.S. Lewis made this the name of a prince who became a king. Adventurous, literary, and carrying a regal spirit that suits a modern royal name perfectly.
26. Dashiell
- Origin: French
- Meaning: Page boy, messenger — the one who serves the prince
Literary and cool and carrying a connection to royal court tradition in the most unexpected way.
27. Evander
- Origin: Greek / Scottish
- Meaning: Good man, bow warrior
Good man as a first meaning. Evander carries a strength of character and a mythological depth that belongs on a boy with royal ambitions.
28. Finn
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Fair, white, clear
Finn MacCool was the great warrior-prince of Irish mythology. Short, warm, and carrying a Celtic royal energy that never goes out of style.
29. Flynn
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Son of the red-haired one, descendant of Flann
Warm, Irish, and carrying a brightness and confidence that belongs on a boy who will lead from the front.
30. Jasper
- Origin: Persian / Greek
- Meaning: Bringer of treasure
One of the traditional names of the three wise men who visited a newborn king. Warm, grounded, and full of a natural richness that suits a prince name beautifully.
31. Knox
- Origin: Scottish / Old English
- Meaning: Round hill, hillock
One syllable and enormous presence. Knox carries a modern confidence and a Scottish heritage that suits a boy born to stand out.
32. Leandro
- Origin: Greek / Spanish
- Meaning: Lion man, brave as a lion
Lion strength — the animal of royalty across every culture in the world. Leandro is bold, Mediterranean, and carrying a natural courage that belongs on a prince.
33. Leonidas
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Son of a lion
Three hundred Spartans at Thermopylae were led by a Leonidas. Bold, historic, and carrying one of the great acts of courage in all of ancient history.
34. Lorcan
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Little fierce one, silent
Carried by Irish kings and chieftains. Rare outside of Ireland which is exactly what makes it such a distinctive and beautiful royal choice.
35. Magnus
- Origin: Latin / Old Norse
- Meaning: Great, mighty
Carried by Scandinavian kings across history. Simply means great — and carries its meaning with a quiet royal confidence that never needs to announce itself.
36. Oberon
- Origin: Germanic / Old French
- Meaning: Noble bear
King of the fairies in Shakespeare and a name that carries a regal mythological quality unlike anything else on this list.
37. Phineas
- Origin: Hebrew / Egyptian
- Meaning: Nubian, oracle
Warm, unusual, and carrying a cheerful energy alongside a connection to ancient royal Egyptian tradition.
38. Rafferty
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Abundance, prosperity, one who will prosper
Prosperity built right in. Rafferty carries a warm Irish energy and a generous spirit that belongs on a boy born into abundance.
39. Ronan
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Little seal, oath
Carried by Irish kings. Ronan is warm, short, and full of a Celtic royal quality that suits a modern prince name perfectly.
40. Soren
- Origin: Danish / Latin
- Meaning: Stern, severe — but also to thunder
Quiet power. Soren is carried in Scandinavian royal and intellectual tradition and belongs on a boy who leads through thought rather than noise.
41. Sterling
- Origin: Old English
- Meaning: Of high quality, genuine worth
High quality in every sense. Sterling carries a brightness and worth that feels completely royal without being over the top about it.
42. Sullivan
- Origin: Irish / Gaelic
- Meaning: Dark-eyed, hawk-eyed
Sharp, watchful, and full of Irish warmth. Sullivan is distinctive and grounded and carries a natural authority that suits a prince name well.
43. Theodore
- Origin: Greek
- Meaning: Gift of God
A gift of God — which is exactly how a prince son feels. Theodore is warm, long, and one of the great royal names across European tradition.
44. Valerian
- Origin: Latin
- Meaning: Strong, healthy, from the Valeria family
Carried by Roman emperors and European noble families. Long, warm, and carrying a Roman imperial heritage that very few modern names can match.
45. Zane
- Origin: Hebrew / Old English
- Meaning: God is gracious, gift from God
Short, sharp, and full of energy. Zane carries a grace and modern confidence that belongs on a boy who will grow into someone people genuinely look up to.
Wrapping Up
Your son does not need a crown to carry a royal name. What he needs is a name that already carries the weight of something real — history, meaning, and a quiet confidence that no one can take away.
From the ancient power of Amir and Rex to the warm modern energy of Finn and Knox, every name on this list was chosen because it gives a boy something worth growing into.
Save this to your Pinterest board so other parents searching for the perfect royal name can find it too!