Melanie

This article is about the given name. For other uses, see Melanie (disambiguation).
Melanie
Olivia de Havilland portrayed Melanie Hamilton in Gone with the Wind
GenderFemale
Language(s)Greek
Origin
Region of originGreece
Other names
Nickname(s)Mel
Related namesMelany

Melanie is a feminine given name derived from the Greek μελανία (melania), "blackness"[1] and that from μέλας (melas), meaning "dark".[2] Borne in its Latin form by two saints, Melania the Elder and her granddaughter Melania the Younger,[3] the name was introduced to England by the Normans in its French form Melanie. However, the name only became common in English usage in the 1930s because of the popularity of Margaret Mitchell's 1936 novel Gone with the Wind and its 1939 film adaptation, as one of the novel's main characters was named Melanie Hamilton. The name's popularity increased until the 1970s, since remaining constant. Melanie was the 80th most popular name for girls born in the United States in 1957 and, as Mélanie, it was the 86th most popular name for girls born in France in 2004.[3]

People named Melanie

People named Mélanie

Mélanie is a feminine French given name. Notable people with the name include:

Fictional characters

See also

References

  1. ^ Melania, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon at the Perseus Digital Library
  2. ^ Melas, Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon at the Perseus Digital Library
  3. ^ a b Behind the Name