Skip to main content

Lewis

Today's name: Lewis

Pronunciation: LU-iss (not to be confused with LU-ee)

Potential nicknames: Although strong on its own, Lewis could be a Lew/Lou or Lewie.

Origin: Germanic, meaning "fame and war," equivalent to "renowned fighter." It is the English spelling of French Louis. Both names come from the Old German name Aloysius, although some sources say it is from the Old High German name Hluodowig.

Popularity: In 2010 there were 319 baby boys named Lewis (along with 124 named Louie and 901 named Louis), ranking at #717. It was in the tp 100 from 1880 to 1930, but its ranking has not changed much in the past decade. In 2003 it ranked #2 in Scotland (and for the past 3 years), #16 in England, #17 in Wales, and #19 in Northern Ireland. In 2011 it went up to #633 with 366 births. Other variants also ranked - Luis, Louis and Luis.

Fun fact: (1) Author Lewis Caroll, born Charles Dodgson, of Alice in Wonderland fame. (2) The Isle of Lewis, also known as the Hebrides, is an island off of Scotland. (3) Also a surname, one of the surname's most famous bearers being C.S. Lewis, author of The Chronicles of Narnia. Others include Jerry Lewis and Jerry Lee Lewis, Daniel Day Lewis and Sinclair Lewis. (4) The name Louis, which Lewis comes from, was used by 18 French kings, multiple saints, and various famous people. (5) Saint David Lewis. (6) Famous explorers Lewis and Clark.

.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Galician Baby Names

I grew up on a street that was named an Italian variant of Roger. When I got married and we bought our first house, it turned out to be on Roger Street. Once noting that coincidence, I started searching for other variants of the name. However, female variants turned out to be pretty nonexistent. Save for Roxeria, which I later discovered was the Galician female form, possibly pronounced rohz-AIR-ee-uh. That led me to a few lists of female Galician names, ranging from common to rare. Here is a sampling of names not often heard here in the states... Albina Alda Alma Alodia Aloia Amada Amadora Amalia Amparo Anisia Antia Araceli Aranzazu Artemisa Avelina Azucena Baia Balbina Baltasara Beatriz Benvida Berenice Bieita Branca Braulia Caetana Carola Casilda Casimira Ceferina Celsa Cipriana Cira Clorinda Coralia Cornelia Cosima Davinia Delfina Desideria Dionisia Dominga Dorinda Dorotea Dositea Edelmira Edenia Elba Elvira Emiliana Etelvina ...
2 comments
Read more

Elowen

Elowen is a recent Cornish baby name meaning "elm." It may not take off in America like the last Cornish hit, Jennifer, but it's certainly pretty. She's part of a "linguistic revival," as Appellation Mountain puts it  here . Her nickname could be Ellie, Elle or Ella, or a more unusual choice, Wendy. The pronunciation of Elowen is "ell-LOH-en," though most Americans will probably stick with "ELL-oh-wen." Please note that it is not spelled Elowyn. There is a similar name, Eowyn, but if you spell it Elowyn it will no longer be the Cornish name meaning elm tree, just some creative name. Other great Cornish names include Penrose, Chesten (the Cornish form of Christine), Demelza, Denzel, Hammitt, Kerensa/Kerenza, Meraud (very similar to French gem name Emeraude, both meaning emerald, but Meraud is pronounced "meh-row"), Merryn, Morwenna, Tremain, Emblyn, Jory, Massen, Treeve and Cotton. Here's 's a link to a post on Cornish n...
2 comments
Read more

Ancient Germanic Female Deities

Loki and Idun by John Bauer Here is a list of ancient Germanic goddess and personifications. There is some overlap with the goddesses of the Norse pantheon, and I've limited it to those names that I think would wear well today on modern babies. Of the following names, only the following were used in 2016. Sol was given to 91 girls, Ran to 5 girls, Saga to 9 girls, and Beyla to 6 girls. Beyla - as a possible agricultural personification, her name could mean "cow," "bean," or "bee," but she has been associated with bees and mead, so my guess is "bee." However, there's been a proposed connection to the reconstructed Proto-Norse name Baunila, which means "little bean." This is also a Spanish and Italian girls name. Fulla - possibly means "bountiful." Her other name is Volla, which I think is equally accessible as a name. She is a virgin goddess in Old Norse mythology. Gersemi - means "treasure." Sh...
Post a Comment
Read more