Rose
From Naming Names
Rose is a female given name of seperate Germanic and Latin origins.
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[edit] Etymology
The name Rose most likely originated as a short form for names beginning with the Germanic element rosa, originally hros, meaning "horse" (e.g. Rosalind hros + lind).
However, the name also conveniently resembles English and French "rose", the name of a flower (scientifically referring to all flowering shrubs of the Rosa genus). Over time, this has become the more popular association. The Latin word rosa is derived from Greek rhodon (Aeolic: wrodon), which is related to Old Persian *vrda- (N.B. the modern Persian form is gul, due to phoentic changes in the language over time). The Old Persian and Greek are likely from a mutual Thraco-Phrygian origin and the theoretical ultimate source of all this is the Proto-Indo-European element *wrdho- meaning "thorn, bramble".
The Latin form of the name is Rosa, which is still the form used in Italian and Spanish.
[edit] History
The Germanic name Rose was used in medieval times as a shortened form of more popular full names such as Rosalind and Rosamund. Such names were brought to Britain by the Normans with their invasion in 1066. Rose remained a rare name untill it was revived in the Victorian era with the growing popularity of "flowery names". Thus, the modern name Rose is more strongly associated with the flower than with its original Germanic origins.
[edit] Notable Namesakes
[edit] People
- St. Rose of Lima (1586–1617), first Catholic saint of the Americas
- Rose Schneiderman (1882–1972), American labor union leader and socialist
- Rose Stone (b. Rosemary Steward, 1945), African-American singer and keyboardist; member of Sly & the Family Stone
- Axl Rose (b. William Bruce Rose, Jr., 1962), frontman of American hard rock band Guns N' Roses
- Rose McGowan (b. 1973), American actress
[edit] Fictional Characters
Categories: Given name | Feminine | English | French | German | Germanic origin | Floral names
