Evelyn (name)

For other uses, see Evelyn.
Evelyn
Pronunciation ewellyn
Gender unisex
Language(s) English
Origin
Language(s) English
Word/name Evelyn (surname)
Derivation from Norman French feminine personal name Aveline
Look up Evelyn in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Evelyn is a name in the English language, where it can be used as a first name or a surname.

As a first name, it can refer to persons of either sex, although it is more commonly borne by females. The name originally was used a surname, which derived from Aveline, a feminine Norman French diminutive of the name Ava.

Evelyn is also sometimes used as an Anglicisation of the Irish or Aibhilín and Éibhleann.[1] Aibhilín is a variant form of Eibhlín, which is also derived from the Norman French Aveline.[2] Éibhleann, on the other hand, is said to be derived from the Old Irish óiph, which means "radiance", "beauty"; a variant of this name is Éibhliu, another Anglicised form of the name is Evilin. Another school of thought is that the name "Evelyn" means "hazelnut".[3]

Variant forms of the feminine first name Evelyn include: Evelyne, Eveline, Evaline, Evelin, Evylen, Eveleen.[1]

Persons with the surname

Persons with the first name

Women
Men

Fictional characters

Ships

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 95–96, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
  2. Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 341, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
  3. Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 347, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
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