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9 entries found.

masc. proper name, little used in U.S. before 1980; in the top 100 names given to boys from 1992; apparently an alteration and appropriation of the surname Conner (13c.), representing Old English cunnere "examiner, inspector" (as in ale-conner; see con (v.3)).

Alethea

fem. proper name, from Greek aletheia "truth, truthfulness," from alethes "true," literally "not concealing," from privative prefix a- "not" (see a- (3)) + lēthē "forgetfulness, oblivion, concealment," from PIE root *ladh- "be hidden" (see latent).

Alexander

masc. proper name, from Latin, from Greek Alexandros "defending men," from alexein "to ward off, keep off, turn (something) away, defend, protect" + anēr (genitive andros) "man" (from PIE root *ner- (2) "man"). The first element perhaps is related to Greek alke "protection, help, strength, power, courage," alkimos "strong;" and cognate with Sanskrit raksati "protects," Old English ealgian "to defend."

As a kind of cocktail recipe featuring crème de cacao and cream, Alexander is attested from 1913; the reason for the name is unclear.

Aleut

native of the Aleutian Islands, 1780, of unknown origin, probably from a native word. First applied by Russian explorers c. 1750, perhaps from Alut, name of a coastal village in Kamchatka [Bright]. Their name for themselves is unangax. Related: Aleutian.

Alexandria

city in Egypt, founded 332 B.C.E. by Alexander the Great, for whom it is named. Also see -ia. Related: Alexandrian.

Alexandrine

in reference to a type of verse line, 1580s (adj.); 1660s (n.), said to be from Old French Roman d'Alexandre, name of a poem about Alexander the Great that was popular in the Middle Ages, which used a 12-syllable line of 6 feet (the French heroic verse); it was used in English to vary the heroic verse of 5 feet. The name also sometimes is said to be from Alexandre de Paris, 13c. French poet, who used such a line (and who also wrote one of the popular Alexander the Great poems).

Alexis

masc. proper name, from Greek alexis, from alexein "to ward off, keep, protect" (see Alexander). The Latin form was Alexius.

Alemanni

name of a Germanic tribe or confederation from the Elbe River region that in late Roman times settled along the upper Rhine in Alsace and part of Switzerland, from Proto-Germanic *Alamanniz, probably meaning "all-man" (see all + man (n.)) and likely denoting a coalition or alliance of tribes rather than a single group.

But on another theory perhaps meaning rather "foreign men" (compare Allobroges, name of a Celtic tribe in what is now Savoy, in Latin literally "the aliens," in reference to their having driven out the original inhabitants), in which case the al- is cognate with the first element in Latin alius "the other" and English else.

The defeat of the Alemanni by a Frank-led army at Strasburg in 496 C.E. led to the conversion of Clovis and the rise of Frankish political power. The Alemanni were absorbed into the Frankish Kingdom in 796. Not historically important, but through proximity and frequent conflict with the Franks their name became the source of French Allemand, the usual word for "German, a German," and Allemagne "Germany." In modern use, Alemannish, Alemannic refers to the dialects of modern southwestern Germany; Alamannic refers to the ancient tribes and their language.

Adam

masc. proper name, Biblical name of the first man, progenitor of the human race, from Hebrew adam "man," literally "(the one formed from the) ground" (Hebrew adamah "ground"); compare Latin homo "man," humanus "human," humus "earth, ground, soil."

The name was also used to signify the evil inherent in human nature (as a consequence of Adam's fall), and other qualities (nakedness, gardening) associated with the biblical Adam. Adam's ale "water" is from 1640s. To not know (someone) from Adam "not know him at all" is first recorded 1784. The pet form of the name in Middle English was Addy, hence Addison; other old pet forms (Adkin, Adcock) also survive in surnames.

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