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Origin: |
Margot is a diminutive form of Marguerite, the French form of Margaret, which was composed of the shortened form Marg and the Old French diminutive suffix -ot. Both Margaret and Marguerite derive from the Latin name Margarita which ultimately derives from the Greek margarites "pearl." The homophone Margaux, used as an alternative spelling of Margot, is taken from the village of Margaux in France which lies in the Haut Médoc winemaking region in South West France, and is particularly famous for the Château Margaux wine. From the 15th century, the wine produced here was known under the names Margou, Margau, Margous and Margose.* |
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Usage: |
Margaret was one of the most successful names in medieval Europe, borne by several queen consorts, in England, Scotland, France, Denmark and Navarre, and several saints. The most famous of these was the, seemingly apocryphal, 5th-century saint, St Margaret of Antioch (or Margaret the Virgin-Martyr), whose veneration was extremely popular particularly in England (where more than 250 churches are dedicated to her) and in France. St Margaret was also the patroness of childbirth and pregnant women. Given the perilous nature of medieval childbirth, St Margaret was commonly evoked during this time, and it isn't difficult to imagine that many grateful mothers named their children in honour of her after a safe delivery. The importance of St Margaret during childbirth is distinctly demonstrated by historian Helen Castor in her BBC series Medieval Lives: Birth, Marriage, Death: As Marguerite was prolifically used in France, the -ot diminutive-ending Margot was undoubtedly used as a familiar form, but how common it was is difficult to tell. One of the most famous medieval Margots in popular culture is "La Reine Margot": Marguerite de Valois (1553–1615), queen of France and of Navarre. However, this nickname was invented by Alexandre Dumas who titled his first novel on the Trilogy of Valois, La Reine Margot in 1845. A Margot la Gantière and Margue la Crespinière can be found in the 1292 Census of Paris.* It can also be found twice in the first half of the 15th century in Paris* and four times in the latter half of the 15th century in Choisy.* These are only a handful of examples, but that is often the case with diminutives when a formal (often Latinised) form was most commonly used on paper records. As a report from The Academy of Saint Gabriel points out, "Although we only have a few examples of Margot in period, it was probably available for most of [Middle Ages]. It may not have been at all common, but our sources are spotty enough that we really can't tell."* Margot isn't visible in records in Britain during this period, however. The Normans brought Old French as the official language to England and so the diminutive ending -ot was also common in British names. Instead of Margot, though, Magot and Megot were used instead. There is one example of Margot in Britain that I can find in Conway, Wales in 1560* but this is in a minority.* By the 19th century, we see Margot in increasing use as a standalone name in France. It was rather uncommon, however, and was seemingly much more used as an actual nickname than records suggest. For example, in 1910 — when Marguerite ranked #3 in France — Margot alone was #490. The same situation can be seen in Britain. Margot came into more established as a standalone name in the 19th century as birth records in England and Wales show:
Margot saw a boost in 1894 when it began to be registered more regularly. It does not seem coincidental that 1894 was the year that socialite Margot Tennant — later Margot Asquith, Countess of Oxford and Asquith (1864–1945) — married Home Secretary Herbert Henry Asquith. It slackened off in use in the first half of the 1900s, seeing a boost again in 1908 when Asquith became Prime Minister — an office in which he served until 1916. Margaret was in the top ten in each decade from 1500 to 1954 (and #1 in 1924, 1934 and 1944), finally slipping to #39 by 1964 and out of the top 100 by 1974, so several of these many many Margarets may have been known as Margot. Several famous Margots were formally Margaret. Margot Asquith was born Emma Alice Margaret; British actress Margot Bryant (1897–1988) was registered Kathleen Mary Margaret and ballerina Margot Fonteyn was formally Margaret Evelyn. This, more than anything, shows us that actual data for the popularity of Margot is misleading, as it was actively used as a nickname, while Margaret was written on birth records. The spelling Margaux wasn't registered until 1976 which we can attribute to American fashion model and actress, Margaux Hemingway (1954–1996). Hemingway was given the name Margot Louise, but changed it to Margaux when she found out that she was named after the wine, Château Margaux, which her parents were drinking the night she was conceived. Margaux first ranked in France's top 500 in 1984 at #421 but was in the top 50 by 1991. click to enlarge
From 1996 to 2009 in England and Wales, Margot, Margaux and Margo were all below the top 1000 each year. In 2009, Margot rose to #879 (38 births) and saw a gradual rise thereafter. It jumped up to #415 (104 births) in 2014 and #273 (178 births) in 2015. Margaux and Margo both picked up more momentum in 2014 and are both, too, on a steep upward curve currently. In 2016, Margot ranked #186 with 293 births in England and Wales. Margaux was #955 (38 births) and Margo was #994 (36 births). In France, both Margot and Margaux have ranked in the top 60 since 1994. In 2015, Margaux ranked #32 and Margot ranked #47. |
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Famous Bearers: |
History: * Margot Asquith, countess of Oxford and Asquith (1864–1945), socialite, author and wife of Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith. Contemporary: * Margot Marsman (born 1932), Dutch swimmer. Literature and Other Media: * La Reine Margot, 1845 novel by Alexandre Dumas. |
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Variants: |
Margo, Margaux |
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Pronunciation: |
MAR-gō [key] |
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Maggie |
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Sibling Names: |
Ottilie Elodie Alba Sylvie Honor Beatrix |
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Name Lists: |
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Thanks to Freya for requesting this name.
