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Saskia

saskiahohenlohe
Princess Saskia of Hohenlohe-Lang


 Saskia (SAHS-kee-uh) is a Danish and Old German name meaning "Saxon," a woman of the Saxon people. Saxon's first element means "knife/short sword" or "small ax," but with the -on suffix it means "knife/small ax wielder," or "swordsmen." Saxia is an alternate form that is even more rare. Potential nicknames include Sax, Sass, Sassy, Kia, Kiki, Ski, Skia, Sa Sa, Saski or Sia. Some say this name could also be of Slavic origin, related to Sasha, a short form of Alexandra that can stand on its own, but that is debatable.

Fun facts: (1) There is currently a Princess Saskia of Hohenlohe-Langenburg, born Saskia Binder. Princess Saskia of Hanover is another namesake, more commonly known as Saskia Hooper, the daughter of Turiya Hanover. (2) Saskia was the wife of Rembrandt, the famous 17th century Dutch painter, and use of her name in the Netherlands can be traced back to her. (3) Saskia is a character in The Wanderess novel by Roman Payne. (4) 461 Saskia is an asteriod. (5) There are a number of other TV references, actresses, writers and athletes.

Popularity: Saskia has been mildly popular in the UK for ages, and has become popular in Australia, but in 2010 there were only 19 American babies given this name, according the the Social Security Administration. In 2011 there were only 16, in 2015 there were 18.

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Comments

  1. merdenomsnamesSeptember 8, 2011 at 4:28 PM

    I love the idea of Sax as a nickname for Saskia, given the origins of the name it seems rather logical.

    ReplyDelete
  2. CristinaSeptember 8, 2011 at 11:30 PM

    Actually, that's a great idea! I will add that to the nickname list just in case people don't view the comments to see your suggestion.

    ReplyDelete

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