Meaning & Origin
A municipality of Masbate, Philippines.
Esperanza is a girl's and boy's baby name of Spanish origin, from the Spanish esperanza meaning "hope" — one of the three great theological virtues alongside faith and charity. It has been widely used across Spain and Latin America as a name of profound optimism and spiritual aspiration.
With over 20,000 U.S. births recorded, Esperanza has been a consistent presence in Hispanic-American communities. Sandra Cisneros's novel The House on Mango Street features an Esperanza as its narrator, and the name carries the same aspirational energy in that literary context as it does in everyday life.