100 Roman names for boys you will love

A curated list of the most popular ancient Roman names for boys and their meaning. Common and uncommon male names from ancient Roman and early Christian times.

Ancient Roman names and surnames make wonderful first names for boys and girls. 

Ancient sources kept records of many of them: some are from pagan times, some from the Christian era, some are now rarely heard, and some roman names are so popular, you may have encountered without even realizing what their origin was!

Today, we are sharing a list of the most popular Roman names for boys with their meaning and origin.

We have also added a list of 100 ancient Roman male names, in alphabetical order, with both popular and unusual Latin names for boys you may like.

See also: 100 ancient roman baby names for girls

Latin male names: origin and meaning

Latin and Roman names tend to have one of the following origins:

Latin first names (prenomen): Roman citizens usually had a name made of three parts (e.g. Gaius Julius Caesar, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa).

The first part of the name was called ‘praenomen’: many of the male names we still use today are ancient Latin first names: Marcus, like in Marcus Antonius, is a good example.

In many cases, Latin names still in use today are ancient Roman names that you can find in Latin form or adapted to modern spellings. Marcus > Mark

Roman Family names: the middle name of ancient Roman citizens was the name of the gens you were born into, i.e. a family name.

These would have been shared by the member of the same family, just like it happens with modern surnames, but over time became exceptionally popular first names, that we still use.

Julius is a good example: originally the surname of the gens Julia, it has been for centuries a popular first name for boys.

Roman cognomen:The third part of the ancient latin male name was called ‘cognomen’ and it was a sort of nickname.

It could come from an honorary title ‘Caesar’, ‘Magnus’ or it could distinguish a father from a son, as in Maior (the Elder) and Minor (the Young)

Roman mythology names: many Latin names have their origins in Roman myths and legends and their main characters, either hunger or heroic or divine. Saturninus from the Roman God Saturnus and Marcus from the God Mars are good examples.

Names of place of origin: in many cases, Latin names indicated the place where the person was from. Adrianus for instance means ‘from Adria’.

Descriptive names: some male Latin names were descriptive of the physical characteristics of the person who carried them. Fulvius, for instance, means ‘blond’.

How popular are ancient Roman names?

Some ancient Roman names are very popular, some are very rare.

When choosing a name, take into account that the name may still be in use today but with a different spelling.

In Ancient Rome, the names would have had Latin form: in this list, you will find the latin Roman male name, its meaning/origin when known and common current spelling of the name in contemporary languages.

35 Popular Roman baby names for boys

100 Latin baby names for boys from Ancient Rome

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1. Aemilius – ancient Roman family name
2. Agrippa – ancient Roman cognomen as in Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Emperor Augustus’ son in law and builder of the Rome Pantheon
3. Albinus – ancient Roman family name probably meaning ‘white’
4. Albius – Roman family name probably meaning ‘white’
5. Amatus – loved, from the latin verb ‘amare’ (to love)
6. Amulius – name of the legendary King of Alba Longa, remembered in the legend of the birth of Rome
7. Ancus – name of one of the seven ancient Kings of Rome, Anco Marco
8. Annius – Roman name
9. Antonius – from the gens Antonia, ancient Roman family name
10. Appius – ancient Roman names, still found in the name of Via Appia, in Rome
11. Aquilius – ancient Roman family name
12. Ascanius – from Ascanius, son of Aeneas, ancestor of the founder of Rome
13. Asinius – ancient Roman name 
14. Atticus – from Attica, a region of Greece
15. Attilius – ancient Roman Family name
16. Augustus – Venerable, sacred. Originally an ancient Roman honorary title e.g. Octavianus Augustus
17. Aulus – common ancient Roman first name for a boy
18. Aurelius – of the Aurelia family
19. Aurelianus – name of ancient Roman Emperor (The Aurelian Walls still bear his name)
20. Benedictus – blessed (from the latin verb: benedire, to bless)
21. Brutus – common ancient Roman first name, associated mostly with the man who killed Julius Caesar, popularized by Shakespeare. The original meaning seems to mean ‘obtuse’
22. Cato – Ancien Roman male name
23. Caecilius – ancient Roman family names
24. Caelestinus – of the sky, heavenly, common name for Popes
25. Caelius – Roman family name probably associated with the word caelum=sky 
26. Calvus – ancient Roman name meaning ‘bald, with no hair’
27. Camillus – ancient Roman family name 
28. Candidus – white, candid
29. Cassius – ancient Roman male first name
30. Claudius – ancient Roman family name
31. Clemens – merciful 
32. Cocceius – Roman family name
33. Cornelius – Ancient roman surname 
34. Costantinus – Roman first name from the word ‘constant, loyal’, associated with the first Christian Emperor of Rome Costantinus the Great
35. Costantius – see Constantinus
36. Crassus – ancient Roman family name
37. Crispinus – from the common family name Crispus, originally meaning. with curly hair’
38. Decius – ancient name, probably a contraction of ‘decimus‘=tenth
39. Decimus – tenth
40. Donatus -gifted, donated
41. Drusus – ancient Roman first name
42. Duilius – ancient Roman name
43. Emilius – ancient Roman name probably originally associated with the latin word aemulus=competitor
44. Fabius – ancient roman family name
45. Fabricius – ancient Roman family names probably from the latin for ‘faber’=maker, craftman’
46. Faustus – Favorable
47. Felix – Happy
48. Flavius – ancient Roman Family name. Vespasian, Titus and Domitian were three Emperors of the Flavia family
49. Florius – from the latin ‘flor‘= flower or devout to the Goddess Flora
50. Fulvius – blond
51. Gabinius – ancient Roman family name
52. Galerius – name of Roman Emperor (IV century)
53. Gaius – ancient Roman first name for males
54. Gellius  – ancient Roman family name
55. Hadrianus – ancient Roman name mostly associated with Emperor Hadrian
56. Helius – Sun (Roman God)
57. Hennius – ancient roman family name
58. Hercules – mythological male name from the hero of the same name
59. Horatius – ancient Roman Family name
60. Hortensius – ‘of the gardens’, name of famous ancient Bishop
61. Iginus – healthy
62. Isidorus – gift of the Goddess Isis
63. Iulius – ancient Roman Family name, as in G. Julius Caesar
64. Iulianus – see Iulius
65. Iustus – right, fair
66. Lepidus – ancient Roman cognomen
67. Linus – Latin form of the Greek name Linos
68. Livius -ancient Roman family name 
69. Lucius – ancient Roman name for boys
70. Magnus – great
71. Manlius – ancient Roman family name
72. Marcellus – ancient Roman cognomen, probably term of endearment from Marcus 
73. Marcus – devout to the God Mars
74. Marius – devout to the God Mars or, possibly, ‘of the sea’
75. Maximus – top, the biggest
76. Mauritius – ancient family name possibly originally meaning ‘ from Mauritania’
77. Octavius – ancient Roman family names, name of Rome’s first Emperor Gaius Octavianus Augustus 
78. Ovidius – ancient Roman name made famous by Odidius, the writer
79. Paulus – ancient Roman cognomen, popular in the Christian Era as the name taken by St Paul
80. Patricius – patrician, aristocratic
81. Petrus – stone, name of St Peter’s
82. Pius – pius, devout
83. Pompeius – ancient Roman name, as in Pompeus Magnus (Roman general)
84. Publius, common ancient Roman first name
85. Quartus – Fourth
86. Quintus – Fifth 
87. Remus – from the twin brother of Romulus, founder of Rome
88. Romanus – of Rome, Roman
89. Romulus – name of Rome’s legendary founder
90. Rufus  – with red hair
91. Salvus – saved
92. Sergius – ancient Roman name possibly meaning ‘protector’
93. Sirius – splendent
94. Terentius  – ancient Roman family name
95. Titus – ancient Roman first name and Emperor name
96. Tullius  – ancient Roman family name as in Marcus Tullius Cicero
97. Ursus  – bear
98. Valerius – Ancient Roman Family name, probably from the Latin ‘Valere’ = to be of value,
99. Varus – ancient Roman name, it was the name of the general who famously lost the battle of Teutoburg, one of the most disastrous in Roman History
100. Virgilius – ancient Roman name popularized by the famous author of the Aeneid Virgil

I hope you enjoyed this list of ancient Roman names of boys!