Name of the Week: George

 

Origin:

George is the Anglicised form of the Greek name Γεωργιος (Georgios) which derives from the Greek word γεωργός (georgos) "a farmer, husbandman" or, more literally, "earth-worker," derived from γῆ (ge) "earth" and έργο (ergo) "to work." Zeus Georgos "Zeus the Farmer" was a form of Zeus worshipped in Athens as god of crops and ploughing. His festival was on the 10th day of Maimakterion (November/December) which was the time of plowing and planting of grain.  It is possible that Georgios was used as a theophoric name (which were common in Ancient Greece) in honour of Zeus Georgos, but there is little evidence of it in use in Antiquity. The Lexicon of Greek Personal Names (LGPN) has no citations of Georgios or any variant in use from the 8th century B.C. down to the late Roman Empire.  Some historians have conjectured* that Saint George is in fact a later Christianised form of Zeus Georgos, especially given that the saint was often connected to crops and agriculture.* And, while Zeus Georgos may not have garnered any namesakes in the ancient world, Saint George certainly did later.

Usage:

George feels like a quintessentially British name, yet, compared to other staples which have been popular since before or just after the Norman invasion, George's popularity was much later by comparison. George's eventual introduction to Britain was all thanks to the veneration of Saint George which was established during the Crusades. According to legend, Saint George (280-303) was a Greek-born Roman soldier (from Lydda in the Roman province of Syria Palaestina), who served as an officer in the Guard of Roman emperor Diocletian. When an edict was issued to kill all Christians in the Emperor Diocletian’s army, George proclaimed his faith and refused to be converted. He gave away his money to the poor and was martyred for his faith. His reputation as the epitome of bravery and champion of Christ and the defenceless* saw his veneration spread quickly from Syria Palaestina to the rest of the Byzantine Empire (the Eastern Orthodox Church) in the fourth century. By the fifth century, his cult had spread to the Western Roman Empire. In Britain, George was first referenced in writing in the 7th century* and the Venerable Bede (673-735) included him in his martyrology in the 8th. Regarded as ancient patron of soldiers, George was considered one of the most important military saints, so it is little wonder that he was adopted by the Crusaders. Legend had it that the crusaders had a vision of St. George at the siege of Antioch during the First Crusade (1096-1099) which was attributed to the defeat of the Saracens. Richard I later placed his army under the protection of St. George during the Third Crusade (1189–1192), and it was these crusaders that brought the name George back to Britain with them. Despite the saint's growing veneration, the name George was still rare during this period. Redmonds calculates it to have been the 34th most popular name from 1377-1381. Given the small size in population, that actually only equates to a small percentage, making it still quite an uncommon name. St George's feast day, April 23, was made a holiday in 1222 and the saint was given a further boost in prestige when Edward III established the Order of the Garter with St George as its patron in 1348. The English army carried banners displaying St George’s arms into battle at Halidon Hill (1333) and Agincourt (1415) and the saint’s name was used as a battle cry before defeating the French at Poitiers in 1356.* ― a cry that was immortalised by Shakespeare in Henry V as "Cry God for Harry, England and Saint George!" Further, in 1415, Archbishop Chichele made St George's feast day one of the major events of the liturgical year. St George was firmly established as England's principle patron saint.  Medieval legends had George slaying a dragon, which some say is actually symbolic of him defeating Satan and remaining true to his faith. This legend had mass circulation when it was printed in 1483 by Caxton in a book called The Golden Legend which detailed the lives of saints.  There is a commonly held view that George was little used in Britain until George I ascended the throne in the 1714. This, however, is simply not the case. In fact, George ranked within the top 10 most popular boys' names in England from the early 1500s at least, as we can see from Smith-Bannister's rankings below: 1538-49: #9; 1550-9: #9; 1560-9: #10; 1570-9: #7; 1580-9: #8; 1590-9: #8; 1600-9: #7; 1610-9: #9; 1620-9: #8; 1630-9: #7; 1640-9: #6; 1650-9: #7; 1660-9: #7; 1670-9: #6; 1680-9: #7; 1690-1700: #6.  This popular usage continued throughout the following centuries. According to Leslie Dunkling's ranks, George was #10 in 1700 and #5 in 1800. during which time Britain had three successive reigning kings bearing the name.  Throughout the the 19th century, George was a top 5 staple in England and Wales. From 1870 to 1934, it was the third most popular name after William and John: 1850: #4 1860: #4 1870: #3 1880: #3 1890: #3 1900: #3 1904: #3 1914: #3 1924: #3 1934: #10 1944: #21 1954: #35  1964: #54  1974: #83  1984: #71 1994: #21 As we can see, George remained in the top 100 in England and Wales throughout the 20th century, despite its gradual decline by the 1970s.  In Scotland, George (a staple in the 19th century) remained popular for longer than in E&W but its fall from favour came later. From ranking #6 in 1900 it was still #8 in 1950 and #36 in 1975 (when it was #83 in E&W). However, from that point on it gradually declined to #73 in 1989 and #97 in 1999. From 2004 to 2011, George hovered around the #100 mark, gradually picking up from 2012 onwards.   click to enlarge On the other hand, from 1996, George was a top 20 staple in England and Wales. Strangely, the number of boys given the name was often inverse to the name's rank. For example, from ranking #18 in 1997 (4586 births), the rank increased in rank to #12 by 2007 but decreased in birth count to 3939 births.  It first reentered the top 10 in 2010 at#9 (4542 births ― a number almost equivalent to 1997 when it was #18) and dropped to #12 again in both 2011 and 2012.  2013 saw the high profile birth of Prince George of Cambridge, first child of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Much was made about the name George 'becoming popular' because of the little prince, but the numbers don't quite bare this out. It should be noted though that though the rank increased in 2013 to #10 and again in 2014 to #7, the number of boys named George in those years were less than in 2011 and 2012 when it ranked at #12.  That, of course, is not to say that Prince George has had no impact at all on the name's usage. We've had four years to date of seeing the prince grow up in the spotlight and the British public are ever eager for a glimpse of the Cambridge children. At the same time, George featured as a character in the hugely popular children's TV program Peppa Pig. In 2015, George rose to #4 in 2015 with 4869 births ― a notable increase in both rank and birth count. In Scotland, George ranked #53 (127 births) in 2015 and #62 (107 births) in 2016.

Famous Bearers:

Royalty: * George I of Great Britain (1660–1727), King of Great Britain and Ireland 1714–1727. * George II of Great Britain (1683–1760), King of Great Britain and Ireland 1727–1760. * George III of the United Kingdom (1738–1820), King of the United Kingdom 1760–1820. * George IV of the United Kingdom (1762–1830), King of the United Kingdom 1820–1830. * George I of Greece (1845–1913), King of the Hellenes 1863–1913. * George V of the United Kingdom (1865–1936), King of Great Britain and Ireland 1910–1936. * George II of Greece (1890–1947), King of the Hellenes 1922–1924, 1935–1947. * George VI of the United Kingdom (1895–1952), King of the United Kingdom 1936–1952. * Prince George of Cambridge (b. 2013), third in line to the throne of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.  * 12 kings of Georgia starting from George I of Georgia (999-1027), King of Georgia 1014-1027. History: * Patriarch George of Antioch (758-790), Patriarch of Antioch and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church. * George Frideric Handel (1685-1759), German-British Baroque composer. * George Washington (1732-99), first president of the United States 1789-97. * George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (1788–1824), "Lord Byron," an English poet, peer, politician, and a leading figure in the Romantic movement. * George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), Irish playwright. * George Washington Carver (1864-1943), American scientist and inventor. Contemporary: * George Harrison (1943-2001), British musician of The Beatles. * George Lucas (b.1944), American film director. * George Clooney (b.1961), American actor.  * George Ezra (Barnett) (b.1993), British singer/songwriter. Literature and Other Media: * George Plantagenet, character in Shakespeare's "Henry VI". * George Knightley, character in Jane Austen's "Emma". * George Wickham, character in Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice". * George Bailey, main character in film "It's A Wonderful Life". * George Weasley, character in J.K.Rowling's Harry Potter series, twin of Fred Weasley. * George, Peppa's little brother on "Peppa Pig".

Variants:

Georges (French), Georg (German, Scandinavian), Giorgio (Italian), Jorge (Spanish, Portuguese), Yury, Yuri (Slavic), Siôr, Siôrs (Welsh), Seòras, Seòrsa, Deòrsa (Scottish Gaelic), Seóirse (Irish Gaelic), Shorys (Manx), Jordi (Catalan), Joris, Sjors (Dutch), Gorka (Basque)

Pronunciation:

JORJ [key]

Possible diminutives:

Georgie, Geordie, Jory

Sibling Names:

Alice     Emily     Amelia     Sophia     Lucy     Rose  Henry     William     Edward     Thomas     James     Arthur

Name Lists:

Royal British Names   Medieval Favourites   Terrifically Tudor   Gorgeously Georgian   Victorian Darlings   Slim Softies   Shakespearean Names   Jane Austen Names   Bronte Names   Dickensian Names   Enid Blyton Names   Tennyson Names

 

If you like George you may also like:   Samuel, Harry, Louis, Oliver, Max, Owen, Joseph, Charles, Miles, Hugo

Thanks to Harry for requesting this name.