Christian (given name)

Christian
PronunciationEnglish: /ˈkrɪstʃən, -tiən/
French: [kʁistjɑ̃]
German: [ˈkʁɪsti̯a(ː)n]
Dutch: [ˈkrɪstɕɑn]
Danish: [ˈkʰʁestjæn, ˈkʰʁæstjæn]
Norwegian: [ˈkrɪ̀stɪjɑn]
Swedish: [ˈkrɪ̌sːtɪjan]
GenderUnisex
Other gender
FeminineChristiana
Origin
Language(s)Greek
Word/nameΧριστιανός
Meaning"follower of Christ; beloved of God"
Other names
Related namesChristiaan, Cristian, Cristiano, Chris, Kit
See alsoChristian (surname), Christopher

Christian is a unisex given name, which originated as a baptismal name used by persons of the Christian religion. It has been used as a given name since the Middle Ages.[1]

A historically commonly used abbreviation (used for example on English 17th-century church monuments and pedigrees) is Xpian, using the Greek Chi Rho Christogram Χρ, short for Χριστός, Christ. An example is Xpian Rolle, a daughter of George Rolle (d.1552).[2] The Greek form of the baptismal name is Χριστιανός, a Christian. The name denotes a follower of Jesus Christ, thus a Christian. The common noun and adjective christian are only found in English from the 16th century but the name Christian is found from the 12th century. The Old English form of the noun was christen.[3]

In Europe it was almost exclusively used as a male name but in Britain it was more common for females and used interchangeably with the French Christine.[1] It was common for women in Britain from the middle ages up until the 17th century.[3] Female variants of the name include Christine, Christina, Christiane, Cristiane, Kristen, Cristina, Kristin, and Kirsten.

In other languages

Characters

Males with the given name Christian

Females with the given name Christian

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 55, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1
  2. ^ Heraldic visitation of Devon, 1620 Vivian, Lt.Col. J.L., (Ed.) The Visitations of the County of Devon: Comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564 & 1620, Exeter, 1895, p.652
  3. ^ a b Withycombe, Elizabeth Gidley (1978). The Oxford dictionary of English Christian names (3., reprinted ed.). Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 65. ISBN 9780198691242.
  4. ^ "St. Christian of Cologne". catholicreadings.org. Kenyan Life. 16 April 2019.
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