Name of the Week

A sleek feminine form of traditional George
that is establishing itself as a modern classic.

 

Origin:

Georgia is a feminine form George, the Anglicised form of the Greek name Γεωργιος (Georgios). The name is taken from the Greek word γεωργός (georgos) "a farmer, husbandman,"  derived from γῆ (ge) "earth" and έργο (ergo) "to work." The country of Georgia is thought to be a form of the Persian name Gurjistān, derived from the Persian ğurğ "wolf" -- therefore "land of the wolves."  The name is thought to have been rendered into Georgia by Westerners thanks to the country's prominent devotion to St George.

Usage:

As a given name, George was a top 10 name in Britain from the 16th century onwards, while feminine form Georgi(a)na was in use from the 18th.  For more detailed information about both names see Georgina's Name of the Week post.  As for Georgia, there is obscure reference to a St Georgia, a hermitess of Clermont in Auvergne who died c.500. This however is an isolated case as the name does not appear in regular use elsewhere until it pops up a few times in 17th century Germany, Slovakia and Hungary.  The colony of Georgia in America was founded in 1732 and much of the name's use in the English speaking world came from this. It was named in honour of King George II who gave James E. Oglethorpe a charter to establish the colony.  Georgia was widely used as a girls' name in America in the 19th century, and by 1900 it ranked #87. This filtered over to Britain where it was initially used in small numbers.  The 1881 UK census lists 138 girls with the name (some as a middle name) making it the 2236th most common name at that time.  Georgia continued to be a top 200 favourite in America right up until the 1950s, by which time the name was being used more regularly here as well. Ironically, Georgia was at its lowest point in the US in the 1980s -- the time when it was beginning to pick up popularity in the UK.  This can be seen in Dunkling's data for the number of girls registered with the name in every 10,000 births in England and Wales over the 20th century:  1900  1925  1935  1950  1955  1960  1965  1970  1975  1980  1985  1990   -   -    -    -    2     -     4      2      2      4    8    30 click to enlarge Georgia first appeared in the top 100 in England and Wales in 1994 at #29 and Scotland in 1996 at #70. It rose quickly in England and Wales, peaking in 1997 at #10. After that it began to decline, but is still solidly sitting in the top 60.  In 2013, Georgia ranked #60with 1003 births, compared to #252 in the US.  In 2014, Georgia ranked #39 (119 births) in Scotland and #33 (76 births) in Northern Ireland.

Famous Bearers:

History: * St Georgia (d. 500), French saint and hermitess. * Georgia Caine (1876–1964), American actress. * Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880–1966), American poet. * Georgia O'Keeffe (1887-1986), American painter. * Georgia Harkness (1891–1974), American theologian. * Georgia Hale (1905–1985), American actress. Contemporary: * Georgia King (b.orn 1986), British actress. * Georgia Moffett (b.1984), British actress. * Georgia Frost (b.1990), British model. Literature and other Media: * Georgia on My Mind (1930), a song by Hoagy Carmichael. * Georgia (1978), a song by Elton John song. Other: * 359 Georgia, an asteroid.

Variants:

Jorja, Giorgia (Italian), Đurđa/Djurdja (Croatian) Jurga (Lithuanian)

Pronunciation:

JOR-jə [key]

Possible  Diminutives:

Georgie, George, Peach

Sibling Names:

Holly     Olivia     Emma     Bethany     Chloe     Amy  Lewis     Dylan     Hayden     Joshua     Thomas     Jack

Name Lists:

Butterfly Names

 

If you like Georgia you may also like:   Jessica, Grace, Isabelle, Rebecca, Abigail, Giselle, Lydia, Victoria, Caitlin, Charlotte

 

Thanks to Scarlett for requesting this post.