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William
William the Conqueror. The name William became very popular in the English language after the Norman Conquest of 1066 by William the Conqueror.
PronunciationEnglish: /ˈwɪljəm/
GenderMale
Origin
Word/nameGerman
MeaningVehement protector (Will + helmet (protection))
Region of originGermanic
Other names
Nickname(s)Will, Bill, Billy, Willy, Willie, Liam, Willem, Wim
Related namesWilhelm, Guillermo, Guillaume
Popularitysee popular names
For other uses, see William (disambiguation).

William is a popular given name of old Germanic origin.[1] It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of England in 1066,[2] and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. The modern German and Polish equivalent is "Wilhelm." It is sometimes abbreviated "Wm." The name's shortened familiar version in English is Bill, Billy, Will or Willie. A common Irish form is Liam. Female forms are Willa, Wilma and Wilhelmina.

Origins

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William is from the Norman language Williame (although Norman French was Latin-based and the proper name is Germanic) and is a cognate from the German Wilhelm, and of Germanic origin: wil = "will or desire"; helm; Old English "helm", "helmet, protection";[1] thus the Old German name Wilhelm and the Old Norse name Vilhjálmr have the same roots. The name William has today been interpreted to mean protector of the kingdom or realm.

English history

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The English "William" is taken from the Anglo-Norman language and was transmitted to England after the Norman Conquest in the 11th Century, and soon became the most popular name in England, along with other Norman names such as Robert (the English cognate was Hrēodbēorht[3]), Richard, Roger (the English cognate was Hroðgar[4]), and Hugh (all of Germanic origin, transmitted through the Normans' use of Old French). The name was so popular, in fact, that history records an event in Normandy in 1171 where Henry the Young King held court for Christmas which included 110 knights named "William" - the Williams had gathered in a room and refused to allow any one to eat with them, unless they were named William.[citation needed]

During the Middle Ages the word "cock" was used to describe a self-assured young man (taken after the image of a strutting self-assured rooster). As a result this nickname was applied to a number of names, including William which is where the name Wilcox comes from. The name Wilkin is also of medieval origin taken from the shortened version of William (Will) with the suffix "kin" added.[5]

In the 16th century during the Reformation, Protestants abandoned the usage of Catholic names such as William[citation needed], instead using Biblical names.

According to the 1990 U.S. Census the name William was the 5th most popular first name with 2.451% of the male population (around three million), and the last name Williams was the 3rd most common last name with 0.699% of the population (around 1,747,500 people). While the Census Bureau did not report the frequency of first (or fore) names in 2000, it did report that 1,534,042 Americans shared the Williams surname.[6] According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, William was ranked as the 5th most popular baby name in 2009.[7]

Name variants

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Alternative forms include:

References

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  1. ^ a b Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, Oxford Dictionary of First Names, Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1, p.276.
  2. ^ All Things William, Meaning & Origin of the Name, www.allthingswilliam.com/willynilly/name-origin.html
  3. ^ www.geocities.com/edgarbook/names/r/robert.html
  4. ^ Behind the Name: Meaning, Origin and History of the Name Roger
  5. ^ An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names With an Essay on their Derivation and Import; Arthur, William, M.A.; New York, NY: Sheldon, Blake, Bleeker & CO., 1857; pg. 266.
  6. ^ Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000. http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/data/2000surnames/
  7. ^ Social Security Online: Popular baby names. http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/
  8. ^ List of Faroese male names
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