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Agnes (name)

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Agnes
The name Agnes was widely used due to Saint Agnes of Rome.
GenderFemale
Origin
Word/nameGreek
Meaning"pure, holy"

Template:Otheruses2 Agnes is a female given name, which derives from the Greek name Ἁγνὴ hagnē, meaning "pure" or "holy". The Latinized form of the Greek name is Hagnes, the feminine form of Hagnos, meaning "chaste" or "sacred". The name passed to Italian as Agnese, to (Portuguese) as Inês, and to Spanish, as Inés.

It was the name of a popular Christian saint, Saint Agnes of Rome, a fact which encouraged the wide use of the name. Agnes was the third most popular name for women in the English speaking world for more than 400 years.[1] Its medieval pronunciation was "Annis," and its usage and many of its forms coincided with the equally popular English name Anne, a name commonly thought to be related to Agnes or even versions of the same name.[2] It remained a widely used name throughout the 1960s in the United States. It was last ranked among the top 1,000 names for American girls during that decade. The peak of its popularity was between 1900 and 1920, when it was among the top 50 names for American girls. The Swedish version of the name was the 16th most popular name for girls born in Sweden in 2007, having risen as high as third place in Sweden in 2006. It was also ranked among the top 100 names for girls in Hungary in 2005.[3] Neža, a Slovene short form, was ranked among the top 10 names for girls born in Slovenia in 2008.

Name variants

People named Agnes

People with the given name Agnes

Notes

  1. ^ Rosenkrantz, Linda, and Satran, Pamela Redmond (2007). Baby Name Bible. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-35220-2
  2. ^ "Shakespeare's Wife." New York Times. 4-27-2008.
  3. ^ Behind the Name

See also

All pages with titles beginning with Agnes

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