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Cynthia

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For other uses, see Cynthia (disambiguation).
Cynthia
Cynthia, a 1917 portrait by William Strang.
PronunciationEnglish: /ˈsɪnθiːə/
GenderFemale
Origin
Word/nameGreek
Meaning“From Mount Cynthus”
Other names
Related namesCindy, Cyn, Cyndi, Cyndy, Cindi, Cinthia, Cintia, Cinta, Cinzia, Cyndia, Cinthya

Cynthia is a feminine given name of Greek origin: Κυνθία, Kynthía, "from Mount Cynthus" on Delos island. The name has been in use in the Anglosphere since the 1600s.[1] There are various spellings for this name, and it can be abbreviated to Cindy, Cyndi, Cyndy, or occasionally to Thea or Thia.[2] [3]

Cynthia was originally an epithet of the Greek goddess Artemis, who according to legend was born on Mount Cynthus. Selene, the Greek personification of the moon, and the Roman Diana were also sometimes called "Cynthia".[4]

Usage

It has ranked among the 1,000 most used names for girls in the United States since 1880 and among the top 100 names between 1945 and 1993. It peaked in usage between 1956 and 1963, when it was among the 10 most popular names for American girls. It has since declined in use in the United States and ranked in 806th position on the popularity chart there in 2021.[5] It was also among the top 100 names in use for girls in Canada between 1949 and 1978, [6] among the top 100 names in use for girls in the United Kingdom between 1934 and 1944 [7] among the top 500 names in France for girls between 1970 and 2008,[8] and among the top 500 names in Spain between 1980 and 2010.[9]

People

Fictional characters

  • Cynthia, with certain Sonnets, and the legend of Cassandra, panegyric by Richard Barnfield (1574–1620)
  • Cynthia’s Revels, play by Ben Jonson (1572–1637)
  • Cynthia, Angelica's doll on the cartoon Rugrats
  • Sinthia Schmidt, a.k.a. Sin (Marvel Comics), comic book supervillainess
  • Cynthia, a plaster mannequin of the 1930s created by Lester Gaba.
  • Cynthia, a diclonius and one of four clones of Mariko in the manga "Elfen Lied"
  • Cynthia, the champion of the Sinnoh region in the Pokémon video games.
  • Cynthia, a character in Fire Emblem Awakening
  • Cynthia Lamonde, a major character in the book "Praise" by Andrew McGahan
  • Cynthia Mitchell, antagonist in Lucky Stiff played by Donna Dixon
  • Cynthia, a central character in the poetry of Propertius

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 66. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
  2. ^ "Cynthia". Nameberry.com.
  3. ^ Sandel, Abby (27 April 2009). "Name of the Day: Cynthia". appellation.net. Appellation Mountain(blog). Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  4. ^ Pannen, p. 96.
  5. ^ "Popularity of a Name (United States Social Security Administration)". www.ssa.gov.
  6. ^ Campbell, Mike. "Behind the Name: Popularity for the Name Cynthia in Canada". www.behindthename.com.
  7. ^ Campbell, Mike. "Behind the Name: Popularity for the Name Cynthia in England and Wales". www.behindthename.com.
  8. ^ Campbell, Mike. "Behind the Name: Popularity for the Name Cynthia in France". www.behindthename.com.
  9. ^ Campbell, Mike. "Behind the Name: Popularity for the Name Cynthia in Spain". www.behindthename.com.

References

  • Pannen, Imke, When the Bad Bleeds: Mantic Elements in English Renaissance Revenge Tragedy. Volume 3 of Representations & Reflections; V&R unipress GmbH, 2010. ISBN 9783899716405
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