The baby name Beacon could potentially follow word names and surname names into wider use.
Thanks to Michele for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
WHAT DOES BEACON MEAN?
A beacon might be as big as a lighthouse. Or as small as a lantern.
It’s anything used as a signal, though typically it’s a fire or a light of some type.
The word beacon comes from the Old English beacen – literally, a sign. Farther back, we can trace it to a root word meaning “to shine.”
While many beacons are physical, it’s possible to be a figurative beacon, too. Think of a “beacon of hope.”
SOUNDS LIKE …
That’s not necessarily name-like, but the baby name Beacon does rhyme with Deacon.
It shares sounds with other two-syllable, ends-with-N names for boys. Think of Grayson and Mason and Dutton and maybe even the Norwegian Haakon.
But it also brings to mind surname names beginning with B, like Bennett and Beckett.
Speaking of Beckett …
SURNAME NAME
Beacon is sometimes a surname name.
In which case, it might refer to someone who lived near a hill used for a signal. Historic neighborhood Beacon Hill in Boston, Massachusetts, is one such place. But that’s a relatively new neighborhood. English towns and villages used the name centuries earlier.
But there’s another possible origin for the surname Beacon.
Beatrice shortened to Bekin in medieval English. It’s the same way John became Jankin became Jack. (And Jenkins, eventually.)
It’s possibly that Beacon might sometimes mean “descendant of Beatrice.”
MODERN VIRTUE NAME
But the baby name Beacon succeeds not because of old world villages or a Boston neighborhood. It’s not passed down as a family surname or viewed as a masculine form of Beatrice.
The baby name Beacon appeals because of its virtue-adjacent vibe.
Consider: a beacon helps navigators reach their destinations. From the earliest lighthouses to modern radar, they’ve been calling travelers home for generations.
That makes Beacon a little bit like Journey.
Names that mean light or bright succeed, too. Even Luke fits this category, as do Blaze and Lux, Ori and Abner, Brighton and Bertram.
Famous uses of beacons tie the name to historical moments. Think of the lanterns – one if by land, and two if by sea – in Paul Revere’s ride during the American Revolution. (Though Longfellow’s poem isn’t entirely true to history.)
Beacons famously warned of the approaching Spanish armada during the Elizabethan era. In Seoul, the Namsan Beacon Mound Lighting Ceremony recreates the traditional communication method.
They appear in literature, too. In The Lord of the Rings, beacon fires alert Rohan or Gondor that the kingdom is under attack and in need of aid. (The book and movie are a little different, but the idea is the same.)
As technology advanced, we shifted to using high-tech beacons. The term refers to all sorts of targeting devices, from passenger cars to military weapons and beyond.
Old school, fiery beacons are now lit mostly in celebration.
HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME BEACON?
If none of this convinces you that the baby name Beacon has potential, perhaps numbers will.
In the year 2018, the baby name Beacon debuted in the US data, with five boys receiving the name.
It reached an all-time peak in 2022 with eight births.
As of 2023, five boys were named Beacon.
That’s quite rare, but it’s not zero. And it suggests that at least some parents hear Beacon and think that it’s a strong, meaningful choice for a son.
It could catch on.
What do you think of the baby name Beacon?
I want to like this idea: Beacon is rich in meaning, and the beacon-lighting scene is one of my favorite parts of The Lord of the Rings.
However, here in Seattle, we also have a Beacon Hill, and I used to volunteer with a local nonprofit whose name includes the word Beacon.
People were always mispronouncing it as “Bacon” (sometimes as a joke, sometimes because they genuinely thought that was the pronunciation).
Beacon also reminds me of Beaker, the high-strung, disaster-prone Muppet.
Overall, I would probably steer clear of this one, albeit with regret!
Oh! Good point re: pronunciation. I can hear that being an issue in other accents, too, now that you mention it.
I do love Beaker, but yeah … maybe not a role model. Meep!
so cute <3
Oh, I hadn’t thought about how Beacon is wholesome as a first name or as a middle name. I love the phrase, a beacon of hope. I sent this post to my sister because she has a name that means light, but it was unique word that our mother turned into a name for her. So, Beacon would be a sweet name for her son someday maybe.
May I nominate Sydna? I was googling Sydney and found out that Sydna is a real name and has been used by people in the past.
I don’t like this at all. It is a word not a name and does not work as a name for me.