The Origin of the Name
The "baby name" books and sites are, I'm sure, trying to be politically correct by saying that Jeff means merely "peaceful" or "good peace." However, the name is clearly based on the Germanic Gottfried, which has the elements of "Gott", God, plus "frid", or peace. Gottfried is therefore "God's Peace," a nice idea for the religious people of northern Europe in medieval times. From there we go to Godfrey, the form in which the Normans brought it to England. Later variations were Geoffrey, Jeffrey, and even the three-syllable Jeffery. Sons of a Jeffrey were called Jefferson. That probably covers the most common variations.

How can we exhibit being Noble and Benevolent?
You probably already do it -- it's part of being the nice guy we Jeffs are. Nobility is narrowly defined as indicating descent from some royal or near-royal family. However, it has come to include all men that exhibit the moral qualitites of honor, generosity, and courage. The "nice guy" image is part of that, since we always seem to be enjoyable and agreeable fellows. Benevolence is about our tendency to be kind to those around us, and to be a regular giver to the causes that relieve the suffering that goes on in the world. Why are you so friendly? Why do you help out when others won't? Why do you pull out the cash when people need it? Because you're a JEFF!