|
||||
 [ 2 syll. zoe, zo-e ] The girl name Zoe is pronounced ZOWiy KEY. Zoe has its origins in the Old Greek language. It is used largely in English, German, Greek, and Polish. Derived literally from the word zoe which is of the meaning 'life'. The name was adopted by Greek speakers as a form of Eve, due to the similarity in meaning. It appeared in place of Eve in versions of the Bible translated by the Alexandrian Jews. It was conseqently adopted by early Christians, both as a biblical name and for the associations of its meaning with the notion of eternal life. The name was borne by two early saints, as well as two Byzantine empresses in the 10th and 11th centuries. English speakers first adopted the name in the 19th century, promoted by the Geraldine Jewsbury novel 'Zoe, A History of Two Lives' (1845). Zoe is the feminine equivalent of the English Zoilo. Forms of the name include the Spanish Zoa, the French Zoé, the Dutch and English Zoë, the Czech and Polish Zoja, the English Zowie, and the Russian Zoya. The spelling variants Zoey (English), Zoi (English), and Zoie (English) are other forms of Zoe. See also the related form, the English and French Eve. Zoe is popular as a baby girl name, and it is also regarded as rather trendy. The name has been growing in popularity since the 1980s. Its usage peaked modestly in 2004 with 0.266% of baby girls being named Zoe. It was #54 in rank then. In 2008, it ranked at #58 with a usage of 0.229%, and it was the most popular among all girl names in its family. Zoe was used 38% more than the 2nd most popular name, the English Zoey, in 2008. Baby names that sound like Zoe include the English Zoey, the French Zoé, the Dutch and English Zoë, the English Zowie, the Hungarian Zizi, the Spanish Zoa, the Polish Zocha, the English Zoie, the Czech and Polish Zoja, the Polish Zosha, the Polish Zosia, the Russian Zoya, the Hungarian Zsa Zsa, the Hungarian ZsaZsa, the Hungarian Zsuzsa, the Polish Zuska, the Czech and Polish Zuza, the Czech Zuzka, the Arabic and Swahili Zakiya, and the Arabic and Urdu Zakiyya. KEY: Pronunciation for Zoe: Z as in "zee (Z.IY)" ; OW as in "oat (OW.T)" ; IY as in "eat (IY.T)"   |
