Bess (name)

Bess is both a surname and a feminine given name (usually as the shortened Hypocorism form of Elizabeth). Notable people with the name include:

Given name

• Elizabeth I (1533-1603), also known as "Good Queen Bess"
• Bess of Hardwick (1527-1608), daughter of John Hardwick of Hardwicke
• Elizabeth Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (1759-1824), early female novelist
• Bess Armstrong (born 1953), American actress
• Elizabeth Austin (disambiguation), several people
• Bess Berman (1902-1968), American record label executive
• Bess Bolden Walcott (1886-1988), African American educator, librarian, museum curator, and activist
• Bess Bonnier (1928-2011), American jazz pianist, composer, and music educator
• Bess Bukodi, British professor
• Elizabeth Davies (disambiguation), several people
• Elizabeth Davis (disambiguation), several people
• Bess Flowers (1898-1984), American actress
• Bess Gearhart Morrison (1875-1968), American actress, educator, and speaker
• Elizabeth Holland (died 1547/8), mistress of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk
• Bess Houdini (1876-1943), stage assistant and wife of Harry Houdini
• Bess Johnson (c. 1902-1975), American actress
• Bess Larkin Housser Harris (1890-1969), Canadian painter
• Bess Lomax Hawes (1921-2009), American folk musician, folklorist, and researcher
• Bess Meredyth (1890-1969), screenwriter and silent film actress
• Bess Motta (born 1958), American actress, singer, choreographer, and exercise demonstrator
• Bess Myerson (1924-2014), first Jewish Miss America, and politician
• Bess Nkabinde (born 1959), South African judge
• Bess Norriss (1878-1939), Australian artist
• Bess Phipps Dawson (1916-1994), American painter
• Bess Price (born 1960), Aboriginal Australian activist and politician
• Elizabeth Raleigh (1565-1647), wife of Sir Walter Raleigh
• Bess Rogers, American indie rock musician
• Bess Stinson (1902-1996), Arizona state legislator
• Bess Streeter Aldrich (1881-1954), American author
• Bess Taffel (1913-2000), American screenwriter
• Bess Thomas (1892-1968), Australian librarian
• Bess Truitt (1884-1972), Oklahoma Poet Laureate from 1945 to 1946
• Bess Truman (1885-1982), wife of President Harry S. Truman
• Elizabeth Walker (disambiguation), several people
• Bess Whitehead Scott (1890-1997), journalist

Surname

• Brandon Bess (born 1987), West Indies Test cricketer
• Calvin Bess, Bishop of Trinidad and Tobago
• Daniel Bess, (born 1977), American television and film actor
• Davone Bess (born 1985), National Football League wide receiver
• Dominic Bess (born 1997), England cricketer
• Georges Bess (born 1947), French comics artist
• Rachel Bess (born c. 1979), American painter
• Rufus Bess (born 1956), former National Football League cornerback

Fictional characters

• Bess, in the opera Porgy and Bess
• Bess Marvin, one of Nancy Drew's closest friends
• Bess, an alternate personality of Jessica Buchanan in the American soap opera One Life to Live
• Elizabeth "Bess" McCord, protagonist of the American drama series Madam Secretary

See also

• Bessie