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 [ 2 syll. e-dwar(d), ed-wa-rd ] The boy name Edward is pronounced as EHDWerD KEY. Edward is used chiefly in the English and Polish languages, and its origin is Old English. The name's meaning is guardian of riches. Two-element name derived from the elements 'ead' meaning wealth, blessed ; 'weard' meaning warden, guard. Eadweard (Old English) is an older form of Edward. The name survived the Norman Conquest and was later popularized in other parts of Europe, making it one of the most popular among Old English names. It was first used in England in the 9th century; by the Middle Ages, it was already popular as a royal name. It was known from three Anglo-Saxon kings and another eight kings of England subsequent to the Conquest, but the most prominent were King Edward the Martyr (963-978) who died while he was still a boy, and King Edward the Confessor (1002-1066) who was venerated as a saint as well as the role model of a Christian king across Europe. William the Conqueror was highly respectful of the saint, whom he claimed nominated himself as an heir; this reason, combined with the Christian associations of the name, possiby explained why the name Edward, unlike most other Saxon names, was not displaced by Norman ones. King Henry III was devoted to the cult of the saint; he bestowed the name on his heir Edward I (1239-1307), and later came Edward II (1284-1327) and Edward III (1312-1377). The name saw a revival in the 19th century along with other Saxon names. The name Eduarda (Portuguese and Spanish) is the female form of Edward. The name Edward is used to a great extent; it has 44 variants that are used in both English and other languages. A variant of Edward used in English is Edwards. Other English variants include the short forms Ed (also used in Polish), Ned, and Ted, and the pet forms Eddie, Eddy, Neddie, Neddy, Teddie, and Teddy. Foreign variants of Edward include Duardo (Spanish), Duarte (Portuguese), Eadbard (Irish), Eadbhard (Irish), Eadbhárd (Irish), Eadweard (Dutch), Edek (Polish), Edgard (French, Hungarian, Russian, and Romanian), Edi (Albanian), Edik (Russian), Edko (Czech), Edo (Czech), Edoardo (Italian), Edorta (Basque), Edouard (French), Edrardo (Spanish), Eduard (Catalan, Czech, German, Russian, and Slavic), Eduardo (Portuguese and Spanish), Eduardos (Italian), Eduards (Latvian), Eduarelo (Spanish), Eduárd (Hungarian), Edus (Czech), Edvard (Czech, Finnish, Hungarian, Russian, Scandinavian, and Slavic), Edvárd (Hungarian), Edwardo (Spanish), Edzio (Polish), Eetu (Finnish), Eideard (Scottish), Ekewaka (Hawaiian), Eudard (Scottish), Eudardo (Spanish), Édouard (French), and Guayo (Spanish). See also the related forms, Edison (English) and Ewart (Scottish and English). Edward is a classic favorite. At present it is still popular as a baby name for boys, though it was in more widespread use previously. At the height of its usage in 1918, 1.858% of baby boys were given the name Edward. It ranked at #8 then. The baby name has since experienced a substantial loss in popularity, and in recent years it is of occasional use. In 2008, its usage was only 0.127% and its ranking #148, but it was nonetheless the 2nd most popular after Eduardo (Portuguese and Spanish), within all boy names in its group. In 2008, it was used 4.006% more than Edward. The name Edward has mostly been a boy name, though it has also been given to girls in the past century. In 1942, the name Edward was given to 253 times as many boys than girls. Baby names that sound like Edward include Eduard (Catalan, Czech, German, Russian, and Slavic), Eduárd (Hungarian), Edrardo (Spanish), Edwardo (Spanish), Edoardo (Italian), Edorta (Basque), Edouard (French), Eduardo (Portuguese and Spanish), and Édouard (French). Details of famous persons named Edward: KEY: Pronunciation for Edward: EH as in "Ed (EH.D)" ; D as in "dee (D.IY)" ; W as in "we (W.IY)" ; ER as in "hurt (HH.ER.T)" ; D as in "dee (D.IY)"   |
