The baby name Pax may be short on sound, but it’s rich with style and meaning.
Thanks to Virginia for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
PEACEFUL PAX
The baby name Pax is one of those Latin words that many of us translate without thinking about it – peace.
It’s the kind of virtue name that feels unambiguously good. Universal, even.
PAX ROMANA
Speaking of universal, you might think of the phrase Pax Romana.
It refers to the long period in the first and second centuries, free of warfare, after Rome had conquered the world as they knew it.
The Emperor Augustus was the ruler responsible for the peace, as well as the propaganda machine that convinced the Roman people to embrace the unfamiliar condition.
Around this time, peace was personified as the goddess Pax.
GODDESS NAME
Yes, that’s right – goddess.
The Greeks had a goddess of peace, too – Irene.
But while Irene has remained feminine, Pax is the rare name with clearly feminine roots that transitioned to almost exclusively masculine.
The Spanish Paz, on the other hand, became a feminine possibility. Like Luz, it nods to a title for the Virgin Mary: Nuestra Señora de la Paz, or Our Lady of Peace. While it’s rare in the US, a handful of figures make it familiar. Spanish-born Paz Vega is one notable.
ELSEWHERE ON EARTH
There are two other places Pax surfaces:
- The Mayan solar calendar lists Pax as one of 18 months, the month for planting;
- Pre-Norman England knew the personal name Pæcc. Origins and meaning have proved elusive, but we know that Pæcc is the source of Paxton, the place name and surname.
PAX JOLIE-PITT
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt put the baby name Pax on parents’ radar when they welcomed son Pax Thien Jolie-Pitt. He’s the second eldest of their family, adopted in 2007.
It picks up on casual classic name Max, which was quite stylish by 2007. But it also nods to Paxton. Paxton actually debuted in the US Top 1000 back in 1997. It seems like the celebrity baby name choice may have boosted Paxton’s appeal. Or not – it was rising rapidly when the famous couple made their announcement.
As for the baby name Pax, it’s trended upwards in use since 2007. As of 2019, 65 boys and six girls were named Pax.
PUNCHY MODERN FIND; ANCIENT MEANINGFUL CHOICE
The baby name Pax combines two styles in one. It shares the short, high energy punch of modern picks like Jax and Cole. Pax sounds at home on a BMX bike.
And that x ending is a standard for boy names circa 2020. The Jolie-Pitt boys all have X ending names: Maddox, Pax, Knox. But so do plenty of not-famous children. Think of classrooms full of boys answering to Alex and Felix, Max and Dax, Lennon and Hendrix.
But it’s also so clearly a virtue name that there’s something contemplative and quite about it, too. Pax is a brother for Kai or Jude.
Both rare and familiar, meaningful and subtle, the baby name Pax is likely to please parents for lots of different reasons.
What do you think of the baby name Pax?
First published on September 12, 2011, this post was revised substantially and re-published on December 9, 2020.
For me, this name is a “not on my kid” name. I don’t really like the P in names unless you soften it with another letter. However, it would be cool to meet a little Pax.
Pax Christi is a Catholic peace movement. I’ve always thought the organization sounded like a girl’s name, so Pax feels feminine to me.
We already have a Jacks(on) in the family, so I it doesn’t work for me… but it’s a perfectly nice name. On the other hand, Paxson, Paxtin and Paxon are really ugly.
Pax is a quirky choice with a great meaning and I much prefer it to Paxton. I can see the potential to use the name Pax for either gender.
Related: Paz (which I believe is Spanish for peace) is the name of an actress on Boardwalk Empire, Paz de la Huerta. There is also an actress named Paz Vega (who was in Spanglish), as well as a female musician named Paz Lenchantin.
A very nice point, Angela – thank you! To me, Paz (and Luz) are feminine; Pax and Lux are (mostly) masculine. This is an indefensible position, but there it is.
I think it’s the softer sound of the z plus the fact that they have some similarities to names like Liz and Liza makes them ‘feel’ feminine versus the brisk ‘x’ (and Max, Jax – medieval form of John, and Dax are all masculine names)
I like Pax! Short, sharp & handsome. Yes, Pax skews masculine to me. I used to know one (a male Pax), he should be about 30 now. Neat dude, but a little weird. I love the meaning. Peaceful me. 🙂 I’ll probably never use it, thinking of the Pax I knew but I do so like Pax!
About 20 years ago I read a Baby-Sitters Club book where Mallory rode a horse named Pax. I remember thinking it was a very cool and interesting name. Unfortunately, I now associate Pax with the antidepressant Paxil. Even though Paxton is a legit name, it sounds made-up to me.
Except, that I think of Pax as being decidely feminine, having known a few Maria Paxes and Maria Luzes. These are very common names in parts of South America.
It has a nice meaning, of course, but I can’t bring myself to like the sound of Pax. There really does seem to be a love affair going on with the letter X lately – I’m drawn to it myself, but usually only when it’s part of the traditional spelling of a name (sorry, I can’t get on board with Jaxon or Jaxson).
Dont really care much for Pax or Paxton. I do prefer Max, although that is way too common.
I actually do prefer Peyton or Presley. I’m surprised Presley never made an impression in the boys chart, considering Cindy Crawford named her son that.
And Elvis!
Pretty cool name! Not for me though.