- Florence
- fem. proper name, from L. Florentia, fem. of Florentius, lit. "blooming," from florens (gen. florentis), prp. of florere "to flower" (see flourish). The c.1700 "Dictionary of the Canting Crew" defines Florence as a slang word for "a Wench that is touz'd and ruffled." This was also the Italian city name (Roman Colonia Florentia, "flowering colony," either literal or figurative), which became in O.It. Fiorenze, in modern It. Firenze.