Evander

Here's a name for a Valentine's Day/Lupercalia boy that you've probably never considered. And it's one of my all time favorites for boys.

Evander (pronounced "eh-VAN-der.") is a Greek name meaning "good man." And, I'm sorry, but I have to get on my soapbox regarding baby name websites for a second. Feel free to skip to the paragraph after this next one if you don't want to read it.

I'm not going to tell you which website I'm talking about, but it's a prominent and popular one. A lot of their pages had nothing but the name and some ignorant, catty comment about it. For example, all it said under Evander was a comment along the lines of "stick with Evan." First of all, no. Second of all, I understand that on a baby name blog you're allowed to say what you want. But on a baby name catalog (i.e. a list of name like what you would find in a baby name book) your first priority should be information. All I care about is the name's meaning, language of origin, popularity in my home country, and prominent namesakes. And that is it. If you don't know what those are, then don't add it to the catalog.

Now that I got that off my chest, let's get back to the fun stuff. Evander is the name of a very prominent Pagan from antiquity. Ever wonder how the Greek Pantheon and the Roman Pantheon got to be so similar? Well, Evander was responsible for that. Before there even was a city of Rome, Evander was born in Arcadia, Greece. He established the city of Pallantium where Rome would eventually be, some sixty years before the Trojan War. He is also credited with bringing other things to Italy, like Greek law, the alphabet, and...wait for it...Lupercalia. Historians believe that Lupercalia originated as a holiday in Ancient Greece. After he died, he was made into a deity. Some stories say that he was acquainted with Hercules.

Evander has never charted in the United States. The most well known recent namesakes include a hockey player and a boxer. I don't pay attention to sports, but a quick internet search shows that they did nothing unsavory. So I still found nothing outside of personal taste to justify the "stick with Evan" comment. But namesakes or not, it's really a wonder that there aren't more people with this name. It sounds like a combination of Evan and Xander, which are both very popular at the moment. So if you love either name, but want a name that is unique, Evander is a good option.

Evander is definitely a name that I would consider for a son when the time comes. It just sounds so strong while also sounding lyrical, and the history doesn't hurt either. And it's a great option for a Valentine's Day boy that's not too obvious.

Sources:
http://www.babynamewizard.com/namipedia/boy/evander
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evander_of_Pallene
http://www.mythindex.com/roman-mythology/E/Evander.html

Image Credit:
http://lucbecks.deviantart.com/art/Yagami-Light-109119563