70 Boy Names That Mean King (Or Ruler, Or Prince)

Names meaning "king" split into two very different groups, and it's worth knowing which one you're in before you fall in love with a name.

There are the literal ones — King, Rex, Royal, Malik — which say it outright, and there are the ones that mean ruler quietly, like Henry and Eric, where you'd never know unless you looked it up. Seventy below, grouped so you can see which is which.

Literal — it means king, and it sounds like it

1. Rex — Latin, "king". Two letters of meaning and no ambiguity. Short, sharp, aging well.
2. King — English, used as a given name and climbing. The most direct choice available.
3. Kingston — "King's town". The same root with an ordinary-name shape, which is why it outpaces King.
4. Kingsley — "King's meadow". Softer again, and a proper surname-name.
5. Royal — English. Now genuinely in use.
6. Roy — From French roi, king. Old-fashioned in the best way and due back.
7. Leroy — French le roi, "the king".
8. Delroy — "Of the king".
9. Malik — Arabic, "king". Widely used and well-established internationally.
10. Raja — Sanskrit, "king".
11. Sultan — Arabic, "ruler, authority".
12. Basil — Greek basileus, "king". Currently unfashionable, which makes it interesting.
13. Vasilios — The Greek form of the same. Also Vasili, Basilio.
14. Rían — Irish, "little king". See also Irish boy names for the pronunciation trap here — it is not Ryan.
15. Reagan — Irish, "little king". One large political association to weigh.
16. Rory — Irish Ruairí, "red king".
17. Conry — Irish, "king of hounds".
18. Melech — Hebrew, "king".
19. Negus — Ethiopian, "king". Rare outside Ethiopia.
20. Farrokh — Persian, "fortunate"; borne by kings.

Ruler — the meaning is there, quietly

21. Henry — Germanic, "home-ruler". The best of both: royal meaning, completely ordinary sound.
22. Eric — Norse, "eternal ruler".
23. Richard — "Brave ruler". Overdue a revival.
24. Harold — "Army-ruler".
25. Roderick — "Famous ruler". Rod, Rick, Roddy all available.
26. Walter — "Army commander". Firmly back in fashion.
27. Frederick — "Peaceful ruler". Freddie does the daily work.
28. Derek — From Theodoric, "ruler of the people".
29. Ulric — "Wolf ruler".
30. Aldrich — "Old ruler".
31. Cedric — Literary, generally read as "chief".
32. Waldo — "To rule". Small and cheerful.
33. Dietrich — German, "ruler of the people".
34. Enrico / Henrik / Enrique — Henry, elsewhere.
35. Amalric — "Work-ruler". Very old, very unusual.
36. Erick / Erik — Spelling variants of Eric.
37. Rico — Short for Enrico.
38. Theodoric — The full form behind Derek and Dietrich.
39. Alaric — "Ruler of all". Striking and genuinely usable.
40. Ricardo — Richard, in Spanish and Portuguese.

Prince, noble, chief

41. Amir — Arabic, "prince, commander".
42. Aariz — "Respected leader".
43. Brendan — Irish, "prince".
44. Aristotle — Greek, "best purpose"; the aristos root is nobility.
45. Earl — English rank used as a name.
46. Duke — Same idea, more swagger.
47. Baron — Also in use.
48. Prince — Direct, and carries a strong musical association.
49. Sahib — "Lord, master".
50. Adel — Arabic, "just, fair" — the quality expected of a ruler.
51. Emir — Variant of Amir.
52. Nkosi — Zulu, "king, chief".
53. Oba — Yoruba, "king".
54. Tywin — Literary, no established meaning; included because people ask.
55. Khan — Central Asian title, "ruler".

Emperors and the names that outlived them

56. Cyrus — Persian. Founder of an empire; the name means "sun" or "young".
57. Caesar — Roman, and the root of Kaiser and Tsar.
58. Augustus — "Venerable". Gus is the reason it works day to day.
59. Darius — Persian, "possessing goodness".
60. Xerxes — Persian, "ruler over heroes". Bold.
61. Constantine — "Steadfast".
62. Justinian — "Just".
63. Alexander — "Defender of men". Not a king-name by meaning, but no name is more associated with one.
64. Marcus — Roman, "of Mars". Steady, ordinary, excellent.
65. Otto — "Wealth". Four Holy Roman Emperors.

Short ones

66. Rex — worth listing twice, honestly.
67. Ari — "Lion" in Hebrew, and a natural short form of Amir or Aristotle.
68. Cy — Short for Cyrus.
69. Reg — Short for Reginald, "counsel-power".
70. Hal — Short for Henry, and the name of a king in Shakespeare.

The honest note

A name meaning "king" is a lovely thing to know about your son's name. It is a slightly less lovely thing for him to have to explain at seven, if the name announces it.

The distinction that matters: does the name carry the meaning, or perform it? Henry carries it. King performs it. Both are legitimate — plenty of boys named King do perfectly well — but they are different decisions, and the quiet ones age into adulthood with less friction.

If you want the meaning without the announcement, the strongest options here are Henry, Eric, Walter, Alaric and Rory.

More lists: 80 boy names that mean light, 95 Irish boy names — where Rían, Rory and Conry get fuller treatment — and 90 nature boy names.