Ethel

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Ethel (also

æthel) is an Old English word meaning "noble", today often used as a feminine given name
.

Etymology and historic usage

The word means æthel "noble".[1][2]

It is frequently attested as the first element in

Æthelburg, Æthelflæd, Æthelthryth (Audrey). It corresponds to the Adel- and Edel- in continental names, such as Adolf (Æthelwulf), Albert
(Adalbert), Adelheid (Adelaide), Edeltraut and Edelgard.

Some of the feminine Anglo-Saxon names in Æthel- survived into the modern period (e.g.

W. M. Thackeray (The Newcomes – 1855) and Charlotte Mary Yonge (The Daisy Chain whose heroine Ethel's full name is Etheldred – 1856); the actress Ethel Barrymore
– born 1879 – was named after The Newcomes character.

Notes & Queries published correspondence about the name Ethel in 1872 because it was in fashion.[3]

The feminine name's popularity peaked in the 1890s. In the United States, it was the 7th most commonly given name for baby girls in the year 1894. Its use gradually declined during the 20th century, falling below rank 100 by 1940, and below rank 1000 in 1976.[4]

Ethel was also occasionally used as a masculine given name during the 1880s to 1910s, but never with any frequency (never rising above rank 400, or 0.02% in popularity).[4]

People


Fictional characters

See also

References

  1. ^ "Ethel". Auntyflo.com. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Ethel". SheKnows. 22 August 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  3. ^ Withycombe, E. G. (1945) The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names; 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press; p. 102
  4. ^ a b statistics cited after behindthename.com
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