History of Christian names

by Charlotte M. Yonge

The Greek and Slavonic have by far the most directly religious names, next to the Hebrew, from having been less pledged to hereditary names, and the time of the conversion. The Gaelic devotion was almost all expressed in the Giolla and Mael prefix.

Idol names are of course numerous, but comparison between them is not easy, as they vary with different mythologies. One point is remarkable, that the Supreme God, whether Zeus, Jupiter, Divas, or Woden, never has so many votaries as his vassal gods. Zeno, Jovius, and, perhaps, the Grim of the North, are almost exceptions. The Phœnician Baal had, indeed, many namesakes, and the Persian Ormuzd, giver of life, had several, of whom the pope, called Hormisdas, was one. In general, Ares, Mars, Thor, and Ranovit, the warlike gods, or the friendly Demeter and Gerda, the beneficent Athene, the brilliant Artemis, and Irish Brighde, the queens of heaven, Hera, Juno, Frigga, are chosen for namesakes. Mithras in Persia, and Apollo in Greece, have their share; but, in general, the sun is not very popular, though Aurora and Zora honour the dawn; and the North has various Dags.

Of animals the choice is much smaller than would have been expected. The lion’s home is, of course, the East, and Sinha, his Sanscrit title, is represented by the Singh, so familiar in the names of Hindu chiefs. The Arabs have Arslan in many combinations; the Greeks introduced Leo, which has been followed by the Romans, and come into the rest of Europe; but many as were the lion names of Greece and later Rome, Leonard, and, perhaps, Lionel, alone are of European growth.

The elephant is utterly unrepresented, unless we accept the tradition, that the cognomen of Cæsar arose from his African name. Persia has a few leopards, such as Chitratachna.

The bear does not show himself in favourable colours in the South, and Ursus and Ursula are more likely to be translations of the northern Biorn—so extremely common—than original Latin names. The Erse, however, owns him as Mahon.

The wolf is the really popular animal. Even the Hebrews knew Zeeb through the Midianites, the Greeks used Lycos in all sorts of forms, the Romans had many a Lupus, the Teutons have Wolf in every possible combination, the Slaves Vuk; the Kelts alone avoid the great enemy of the fold, whose frequency is almost inexplicable. The Kelts are, however, the namesakes of the dog, the Cu and Con, so much loathed in other lands, that only a stray Danish Hund, Italian Cane, and the one Hebrew Caleb, unite in bearing his name in honour of his faithful qualities.

The horse is, of course, neglected in Judea, where his use was forbidden; but in Sanscrit was found Vradaçva, owning great horses; and the horse flourished all over Persia. Aspamithras, horse’s friend, Aspachava, rich in horses, Vishtaspa, and many more, commemorate the animal; and in Greece, Hippolytus, Hippodamos, Hippomedon, Hipparchus, and many more, showed that riding was the glory of the Hellenes. Rome has no representative of her equus, except in Equitius, a doubtful name, more likely to be named in honour of the equestrian order, than direct from the animal. Marcus may, however, be from the word that formed the Keltic March, which, with Eachan and Eochaid, and many more, represent the love of horses among the Kelts, answering to the Eporedorix, mentioned by Cæsar. The Slaves have apparently no horse names; but many of our modern Roses are properly horses, and Jostein, Rosmund, and various other forms, keep up the horse’s fame in northern Europe.

Rome dealt, to a curious degree, in the most homely domestic names; Mus, the surname of the devoted Decius, was, probably, really a mouse; for while the swine of other nations never descend below the savage wild boar of the forest—Eber, Baezan, Bravac, the Romans have indeed one Aper, but their others are but domestic pigs, Verres, Porcius, Scrofa.

Goats flourished in Greece in honour of the Ægis, and of Zeus goats, and Ægidios, with others, there arose; but Sichelgaita, and a few northern Geits, alone reflect them. The chamois, or mountain goat, named Tabitha or Dorcas, and is paralleled by an occasional masculine Hirsch, or stag, in Germany.

The sheep appears to be solely represented by Rachael, for though the lamb has laid claim to both Agnes and Lambert, it is only through a delusion of sound.