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George
George ♂ Via Old French and Latin, from Greek Georgios (a derivative of geōrgos ‘farmer’, from gē ‘earth’ + ergein ‘to work’). This was the name of several early saints, including the shadowy figure who is now the patron of England (as well as of Germany and Portugal). If the saint existed at all, he was perhaps martyred in Palestine in the persecutions of Christians instigated by the Emperor Diocletian at the beginning of the 4th century. The popular legend in which the hero slays a dragon is a medieval Italian invention. He was for a long time a more important saint in the Orthodox Church than in the West, and the name was not much used in England during the Middle Ages, even after St George came to be regarded as the patron of England in the 14th century. Its use increased from the 1400s, and by 1500 it was regularly among the most popular male names. This popularity was reinforced when George I came to the throne in 1714, bringing this name with him from Germany. It has been one of the most popular English boys' names ever since.
Pet forms: Georgie, Geordie. Cognates: Irish: Seoirse. Scottish Gaelic: Seòras, Deòrsa. Welsh: Siôr, Sior(y)s. German: Georg; Jörg (dialectal); Jürgen (Low German in origin). Dutch: Joris, Joren, Jurg. Danish: Jørgen, Jørn. Swedish: Göran, Jöran, Jörgen, Örjan. French: Georges. Spanish: Jorge. Catalan: Jordi. Portuguese: Jorge. Italian: Giorgio. Russian: Georgi, Yuri, Yegor. Polish: Jerzy. Czech: Jiří. Croatian: Juraj, Jure. Slovenian: Jure. Finnish: Yrjö. Hungarian: György. Lithuanian: Jurgis. Latvian: Juris. |
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PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "George." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "George." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-George.html PATRICK HANKS, KATE HARDCASTLE, and FLAVIA HODGES. "George." A Dictionary of First Names. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O41-George.html |
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George
George, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Uganda, USA 1. Australia (New South Wales): a lake, first discovered by a European in 1820, and named after King George IV†.2. Canada (Quebec): named after King George III† in 1811 by Moravian missionaries.3. South Africa (Western Cape): founded in 1806 as the first British settlement in Cape Colony called George Town, it was named after King George III†. A shortened version of the name was adopted in 1811.4. Uganda: a lake, originally called Beatrice Gulf in 1875 because Sir Henry Morton Stanley† believed it to be part of Lake Albert. He named it Beatrice after Princess Beatrice (1857–1944), the youngest child of Queen Victoria† and Prince Albert. It was renamed in 1908 after George, Prince of Wales, later King George V†.5. USA (New York): a lake called by the local Native Americans Andiatarocte ‘Place where the Lake contracts’. French Jesuit missionaries saw the lake in 1642 when being escorted past it as prisoners of the Iroquois, and Father Isaac Jogues revisited it four years later on the Feast of Corpus Christi and gave it the name Lac du Saint‐Sacrement ‘Lake of the Holy Sacrament’. In 1755 it was renamed after King George II† by Major General Sir William Johnson (1715–74), superintendent of the Six Iroquois Nations (1755).
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JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "George." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "George." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-George.html JOHN EVERETT-HEATH. "George." Concise Dictionary of World Place-Names. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O209-George.html |
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George
George male forename; St George is patron saint of England. He is reputed in legend to have slain a dragon, and may have been martyred near Lydda in Palestine some time before the reign of Constantine. His cult did not become popular until the 6th century, and he probably became patron saint of England in the 14th century. He is taken as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. His feast day is 23 April.
The George, a jewel bearing the image of the saint, forms part of the insignia of the Order of the Garter. St George's cross is a red vertical cross on a white background. George Cross in the UK and Commonwealth countries, a decoration for bravery awarded especially to civilians, instituted in 1940 by King George VI and taking precedence over all other medals and decorations except the Victoria Cross. George Cross Island is a name for Malta, which was awarded the George Cross in recognition of the bravery of its inhabitants in the Second World War. George Medal in the UK and Commonwealth countries, a medal for bravery awarded especially to civilians, instituted with the George Cross in 1940. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "George." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "George." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-George.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "George." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-George.html |
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George
George (c.640–724), ‘Bishop of the Arabs’. He became bishop of the Arab nomads in Mesopotamia in 686. His writings are one of the main sources for the history of Syriac Christianity.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "George." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "George." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-George.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "George." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-George.html |
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George
George river, c.345 mi (560 km) long, rising in a lake on the Quebec-Labrador boundary, E Canada. It flows N through Indian Lake (125 sq mi/324 sq km) to Ungava Bay (an arm of Hudson Strait). |
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"George." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "George." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-George.html "George." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-George.html |
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George
George
•engorge, forge, George, gorge
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Cite this article
"George." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "George." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-George.html "George." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-George.html |
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