Spotlight on: Veronica

sanctanomina Spotlight

Veronica is one of the most gorgeous names ever, in my opinion, and a great Catholic  name. According to tradition, it’s the name of the woman who wiped the face of Jesus while He was carrying His cross to Calvary; the image of His face was left on her cloth. Though Scripture doesn’t name her, “Veronica” comes from the Latin vera icon, meaning “true image.”

What makes Veronica a particularly Catholic name? Surely non-Catholics use it? Surely they do, but I contend non-Catholics would choose the name Veronica in ignorance of its meaning, or in spite of it. It’s not mentioned in the Bible and it refers to an image, both of which, in my experience with the non-Catholic Christian world, take away from any religious importance that might have been given it. And non-Christians would have no reason to choose a name that specifically refers to the image of Christ’s face on a cloth, and to the woman who wiped His face, except that they like it for other reasons.

Not only do Catholics love tradition and images of holy people, but we remember Veronica and her act of love toward Jesus every Lent in the Sixth Station of the Cross: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus. And names that are heavily used by Catholics tend to travel well — most languages will have a form of a very Catholic name. Some of Veronica’s variants are beautiful, like  Véronique (French), the Russian spelling Veronika, and Berenice/Bernice is related as well (Greek).

One potential downfall of the name Veronica, in my opinion, is the lack of good traditional nicknames, but I think that’s easily remedied with some research and creativity. There’s Ronnie and Vera, maybe Nicky or Nica, maybe even Vicky, but for this namer, none of those are appealing. Reading the comments for the Veronica entry on Behind the Name reveals some other intriguing possibilities: Ronja (pronounced RON-yah), which is said to be the Russian short form of Veronica; just “V” (I think I’d prefer the spelling Vee. Although, signing one’s name with one letter is so romantic and intriguing); Evie (a stretch but doable); and Nona (sweet).

Another potential point against Veronica is the Archie comments. That’s my husband’s first and overwhelming thought every time I mention the name. Sigh.

What do you think of Veronica? Do you have any other nicknames for it to offer? What do you think of the Archie association?

Edited to add: Ha! Funny enough, when I was writing this last night I almost included a bit about St. Veronica Giuliani, just as an example of a saint with the name. I decided not to, but then this morning (July 10) I saw on Facebook that today is the feast of St. Veronica Giuliani! You can read more about her here.

Edited to add (2): I think Via and Vica/Vicka could work as nicknames as well.

15 thoughts on “Spotlight on: Veronica”

  1. We named our daugther Veronica Elizebeth, after Veronica’s wiping the face of Jesus, and Elizabeth for Our Lady’s cousin, the visitation being one of my favorite roasary mysteries. It wasn’t till years later that I realized that she had the same names of the principal characters in Betty and Veronica! (one of my favorite comics from childhood….?) Anyhow, I liked it also because I am half Mexican and wanted a name that would translate easily (Vero is a common nickname in Spanish). Besides, she (my daughter) was Veronica even before I knew she was a girl- I just knew!

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  2. Forgot to add one thing- when my sister in law had a miscarriage, she and my brother named the baby Milagro (Spanish for miracle) because the baby had indeed been a miracle- they had been trying for years, they now have a toddler and another on the way. The name can be for boy or girl in Spanish.

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  4. […] (4) Veronica Veronica’s a match for Anthony, and its long femininity makes it a great sister for Giuliana I think! Such a gorgeous name, and one that I consider exclusively Catholic (though I know it has non-Catholic usage), since she’s never named in the bible but rather her name has come down through tradition. I did a spotlight on it here. […]

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  5. We have a daughter named Veronica Anne, after my grandmother (Irene Veronica). I immediately nixed the nickname Ronnie, but my family tends to give unexpected nicknames. My husband wanted her to have the nickname “Fronie” (long o sound). evidently, it was a common German nickname for Veronica. However, my sister started calling her Vern, and It’s the nickname that stuck. So at age 9, she still goes by Vern or Vernie.

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  7. I love Veronica!! It’s an all-time favorite. I like the idea of Vera or V. I’ve always struggled with finding a nickname that was as beautiful as the original in this case, but I like some of the options listed here.

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  9. […] (5) Veronica I often think of Victoria and Veronica as being similar, since they’re both long, feminine names starting with V and ending with A. But they have very different feels to me — Victoria has that royal English feel I mentioned before, while Veronica has a biblical feel (though she’s never named in the bible). I think many parents would think daughters Victoria and Veronica in the same family are too much, so if Chris and his wife like Veronica I could see them thinking Victoria is off their list — which will be a good litmus test for them. If it makes him and his wife really unhappy to cross Victoria off their list, then they should definitely forget Veronica! But if they like it, some nicknames include Nic/Nica/Nicky (like Nicole and Nicholas, so maybe not?), Ronnie, Vera, Evie, Nona, Ricki, and there are some that are shared with Victoria, like Vee, Via, and Vicka. Maybe even Nora? I spotlighted Veronica here. […]

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  10. […] (5) Veronica I often think of Victoria and Veronica as being similar, since they’re both long, feminine names starting with V and ending with A. But they have very different feels to me — Victoria has that royal English feel I mentioned before, while Veronica has a biblical feel (though she’s never named in the bible). I think many parents would think daughters Victoria and Veronica in the same family are too much, so if Chris and his wife like Veronica I could see them thinking Victoria is off their list — which will be a good litmus test for them. If it makes him and his wife really unhappy to cross Victoria off their list, then they should definitely forget Veronica! But if they like it, some nicknames include Nic/Nica/Nicky (like Nicole and Nicholas, so maybe not?), Ronnie, Vera, Evie, Nona, Ricki, and there are some that are shared with Victoria, like Vee, Via, and Vicka. Maybe even Nora? I spotlighted Veronica here. […]

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  11. I realize this is an older post, but I had to say I love Veronica! Particularly the nicknames Via and Vera, though perhaps that’s just my inner Latin scholar coming out haha. “Via” means way or road in Latin, which always reminds me of “I am the way, the truth, and the life..” and the many biblical encounters on a road (Road to Emmaus, Paul’s conversion, the parable of the Good Samaritan, to name a few). “Vera”, as you’ve said, means truth in Latin and that’s one of my main loves in our faith. The fact that I can be sure that the Catholic Church is capital-T-True is so incredible and fascinating to me.

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    • Ohh yes, you nailed it about the Church being capital-T-True being incredible and fascinating! I’ve been reading some apologetics books to my older boys over the last three months, and seeing all the amazing bits of evidence laid out is absolutely breathtaking.

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