Theodora (given name)

Theodora
The sixth century Byzantine empress Theodora is one famous bearer of the name.
Gender	female
Origin
Word/name	Greek
Meaning	"gift of God"
Other names
Nickname(s)	Dora
Related names	Theodore, Dorothy

Theodora (Greek: Θεοδώρα, Theodōra) is a feminine given name, the feminine version of Theodore, which derives from the Greek words θεός, theos, "god" and δῶρον, doron, "gift".^[1][2] Theodora is first attested in Mycenaean Greek, written in the Linear B syllabic script, as 𐀳𐀃𐀈𐀨, te-o-do-ra.^[3] The name Dorothy (Greek: Δωροθέα, Dōrothea) contains the same word elements in reverse order. It was the name of several saints and queens, including Theodora, a 6th-century Byzantine empress honored as a saint in the early Christian Church. Teodora, a variant, is among the top 10 most popular names for girls born in Serbia between 2003-2005.^[4]

Feminine variants

• Dora (English), Spanish, (Bulgarian)
• Théodore (French)
• Feodora, Fedora - Феодора, Федора (Russian)
• Tea, Teja (Finnish), German, Scandinavian, Slovenian
• Teddi, Teddie, Teddy (English)
• Teodóra (Hungarian)
• Teodora/Теодора (Bulgarian), Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish, Serbian, Macedonian
• Teodora (Polish)
• Thea (English), German, Scandinavian
• Theda (German)
• Todorka (Bulgarian)
• Θεοδώρα, Δώρα, Ντόρα (Greek; modern Greek pronunciation: Theod^hōra, D^hōra, Dora, respectively)
• Tidora (Assyrian)

See also

• Theodora (disambiguation) - list of persons
• Teodora - list of persons

Notes

1. Behind the Name
2. δῶρον, θεός. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
3. "te-o-do-ra-qe". Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B. Deaditerranean.
4. Most popular Serbian names