Name of the Week

There are more saints and popes of this name than you can
shake a stick at. Now the name is also gaining a distinguished
bent from actor Benedict Cumberbatch. 

 

Origin:

From the Late Latin name Benedictus meaning "blessed," derived from benedicte "bless (you)" which was originally made up of the words bene "well, good" dicere "to speak" In the 19th century, the name Benedict also became used as a word for a newly married man who had long been a bachelor.

Usage:

Benedict was widely used across Europe in the Middle Ages, partly because of its religious significance, and also thanks to the popularity of St Benedict — the founder of the highly influential Benedictine Order. One Benedict appears on the Domesday book in 1086 but, for the most part, the name seemed to flourish from the 12th century onwards.  Benedictus is often recorded in the medieval Latin records, but such men were more likely called Bennet — the standard British vernacular form — in every day. The wide usage of the name can be seen in the propensity of the surnames Bennet, Bennett, Bennitt and Bennitts. Even as late as the 18th century, Benedict and Bennet were sometimes interchanged in parish records.  As well as several saints, the name has been borne by no fewer than sixteen popes. For this reason, Benedict has more often traditionally been adopted by Catholic families.  In the 19th century the name was not particularly popular, but it was always used consistently in England and Wales, averaging around 5 birth registrations per year and increasing slightly in the 1880s. There were 69 males named Benedict on the 1841 UK census (68 living in England, 1 living in Wales); 90 on the 1871 census (86 in England, 3 in Scotland, 1 in Wales) and 163 in 1900 (151 in England, 7 in Scotland, 5 in Wales) Benedict has traditionally been used rarely in Scotland, but has seen more usage (especially in Catholic church records) since the 19th, and particularly the 20th, century. In recent years in England and Wales, Benedict reached a slight peak in 1999 at #165 (209 births) but has since steadily declined. In 2005 the name ranked #211 (177 births), was #382 (99 births) in 2008, #449 (84 births) in 2010 and #420 (94 births) in 2011. Occasionally, girls have been registered with the name Benedict, though they have never numbered more than 3 in a year. The feminine forms Benedicta, Benedicte and Benita are used a little more (between 2 and 15 times per year).  Since 2005, Benedict has been registered between 1-10 times each year in both Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Saint Benedict (d.c. 547), founder of the Benedictine order. * Benedict Biscop (c. 628–690), Anglo-Saxon abbot, later considered a saint. * Saint Benedict of Milan (d.c.732), Archbishop of Milan. * Saint Benedict of Aniane (c.750–821), a leading reformer of French monastic houses * Benedict of Szkalka (10th c.), a Hungarian Benedictine monk. * Saint Benedict the Black (d.1589), a Franciscan lay brother whose humility and extraordinary powers as spiritual director caused him to be made Superior. * Saint Benedict Joseph Labre (1748–1783), a French mendicant. * Benedikt Roezl (1823–1885), Czech botanist. There have also been 16 Popes who have borne the name. Contemporary: * Benedict Cumberbatch (b.1976), British actor. Literature and Media: * Benedick, a character from Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing

Variants:

Bennett (Medieval), Benoit (French), Benito (Spanish), Benedetto (Italian), Benedikt (German), Pentti (Finnish), Bento (Portuguese)

Pronunciation:

BEN-ə-dikt [key]

Possible Diminutives:

Ben, Bennet, Bick, Ed, Ned, Nic, Ted

Sibling Names:

Leonora     Hester     Camilla     Rosalind     Mathilde     Ursula  Crispin     Elias     Julius     Linus     Cassian     Ewart

Name Lists:

Vintage Names    Upright Elegance    Saintly & Stylish    Resonant Roman   Medieval Favourites  Names from Tennyson

 

If you like Benedict you may also like:   Erastus, Dominic, Tarquin, Rufus, Sebastian, Felix, Jaspar, Xavier, Gabriel, Corentin

 

Thanks to Rebecca for requesting Benedict as this week's NotW.