Avis (name)
Avis is both a female given name and a surname.
Female given name
The earliest form of this female given name was the Old German Haduwig comprising the elements hadu "battle" and wig "fight": the original form of the modern German female name Hedwig, Haduwig was modified to Havoise by the Normans and subsequent to the Norman Invasion the name occurred frequently in England throughout the Middle Ages, the standard Middle English form of the name being Hawise. As a female given name in modern times Avis is associated with the Latin avis "bird" although the spelling Avice is sometimes found.
Notable namesakes
- Avis Bohlen (born 1940), American diplomat, former Ambassador to Bulgaria
- Avice Maud Bowbyes (1901–1992), New Zealand writer
- Avis Bunnage (1923-1990), British actress
- Avis M. Dry (1922–2007), clinical psychologist and author on the psychology of Carl Jung
- Avis Favaro (born 1958), Canadian medical correspondent for CTV News since 1992
- Avis Gray (born 1954), politician in Manitoba, Canada
- Avis Kimble (born 1944), American model
- Avice Landone (1910-1976), British actress
- Avis McIntosh (born 1938), New Zealand former sprinter
- Avis Miller (born 1945), American model
- Avis Tucker (1915-2010), American owner and publisher of The Daily Star-Journal newspaper
- Avis Stearns Van Wagenen (1841-1907), a partner in E. C. Stearns & Company
- Avis Van Zomeren Successful shower of American Saddlebred horses and Hackney ponies from Timber Hills Farm.
The 1897 novel The Well-Beloved by Thomas Hardy features three characters named Avice.
A character named Avice is the protagonist of the critically acclaimed 2011 novel "Embassytown" by China Miéville.
Surname, with notable namesakes
Apparently engendered by the female given name: notable namesakes include:
- David Avis (born 1951), Canadian and British computer scientist
- Gary Avis, dancer with The Royal Ballet
- Paul Avis, Anglican priest, theologian and ecumenist
- Samuel B. Avis (1872-1924), American politician
- Warren Avis (1915-2007), the founder of Avis Rent A Car
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