Patsy
| Patsy | |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | PAT-see |
| Gender | Female; sometimes Male |
| Origin | |
| Word/Name | Latin Patricius |
| Meaning | "Noble" (i.e. a patrician) |
| Region of origin | north England, Scotland, & Ireland |
| Other names | |
| Related names | Patricia (fem), Patrick (masc) |
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Look up Patsy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" or "Pet" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, or Patrice).
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[edit] Historical usage
In older usage, Patsy was also a nickname for Martha or Matilda, following a common nicknaming pattern of changing an M to a P (such as in Margaret → Meg/Meggy → Peg/Peggy; and Molly → Polly) and adding a feminine suffix.[1][2]
While usually a feminine diminutive name, from the 18th century Patsy also came to be used as a nickname for men and boys called Patrick.[1]
The popularity of the name has waned with the rise of its meaning as "dupe" or "scapegoat".[1] This usage comes from the early 20th Century vaudevillian Billy B. Van, whose character, Patsy Bolivar, was more often than not an innocent victim of unscrupulous or nefarious characters.
[edit] Notable people with the given name
- Patsy Biscoe, Australian singer and performer on children's television shows in the 1960s and 1970s
- Patrick A. "Patsy" Brown (1872–1958), Irish-American maker of the uilleann pipes
- Patsy Burt (1928–2001), British motor racing driver
- Patsy Cline (1932–1963), American country & pop music singer
- Patsy DiNuzzo, Wheelock College Basketball Captain (2007–2011).
- Elias Henry "Patsy" Hendren (1889–1962), British cricketer
- Patsy Kensit (born 1968), British actress and singer
- Patsy Mateo (died 1979), Filipino actress and comedienne, co-host of the variety show, Tawag ng Tanghalan
- Patsy Mink (1927–2002), American politician, appointed an Assistant Secretary of State by President Jimmy Carter
- Patsy Montana (1908–1996), American country & western music singer.
- Patsy O’Connell Sherman (1930–2008), American chemist, co-inventor of Scotchgard in 1952
- Patsy O'Hara, an Irish Republican hunger striker and member of the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA).
- Patsy Palmer, Eastenders Actress
- Patsy Rowlands (1934–2005), British actress in Carry On films
- Patsy Ramsey, (1956–2006) mother of slain child beauty queen, JonBenet Ramsey.
[edit] Fictional
- Patsy, a fictional character from The Tribe played by Sarah Major.
- Patsy (Monty Python), a character in the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and also the 2005 Monty Python inspired musical Spamalot.
- Patsy Parisi, a character in HBO hit series The Sopranos.
- Patsy Sewer, a singer of the Canadian television program Instant Star.
- Patsy Smiles, an upbeat and chipper hyena who is in love with Lazlo in the 2005—American animated television series Camp Lazlo.
- Patsy Stone, one of the main characters in the 1992–2005 British television series Absolutely Fabulous, played by Joanna Lumley.
- Patsy Walker, also known as "Hellcat", a superhero character published by Marvel Comics.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Edgar's Name Pages, accessed 16 November 2007.
- ^ Common Nicknames & Their Given Name Equivalents, accessed 16 November 2007.
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This page or section lists people that share the same given name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article. |
