Alexander
Alexander | |
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Statue of Alexander III "The Great" of Macedon, the best-known bearer of the name whose legacy and fame popularized the name's use throughout Europe and Asia. | |
Pronunciation | /ˈælɪɡˈzændər, -ˈzɑːn-/ Czech: [ˈalɛksandr] German: [ˌalɛˈksandɐ] Polish: [alεˈksandεr] Russian: [ɐlʲɪkˈsandr] Serbo-Croatian: [aleksǎːndar, alěksaːn-] Swedish: [alɛkˈsanːdɛr] |
Gender | Masculine, the feminine form being Alexandra. |
Name day | August 30 |
Origin | |
Word/name | Via Latin Alexander, originally from the Greek Ἀλέξανδρος (Aléxandros), from αλέξειν aléxein meaning "to ward off, keep off, turn away, defend, protect" and ἀνδρός andrós, genitive of ἀνήρ anḗr meaning "man". |
Meaning | "Defender, protector of man". |
Other names | |
See also | Alex, Alexandra, Alexandre, Alessandro, Sasha |
Alexander is a male given name, and a less common surname. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Contents
1 Etymology
2 People known as Alexander
2.1 Rulers of antiquity
2.2 Rulers of the Middle Ages
2.3 Modern rulers
2.3.1 Other royalty
2.4 Religious leaders
2.5 Other people
2.5.1 Antiquity
2.5.2 Middle Ages
2.5.3 Modern
3 Given name
4 In other languages
5 See also
6 References
Etymology
The name Alexander is derived from the Greek "Ἀλέξανδρος" (Aléxandros), meaning "Defender of the people" or "Defending men"[1] and also, "Protector of men", a compound of the verb ἀλέξειν aléxein, "to ward off, to avert, to defend"[2] and the noun ἀνήρ anḗr, "man" (GEN ἀνδρός andrós).[3] It is an example of the widespread motif of Greek names expressing "battle-prowess", in this case the ability to withstand or push back an enemy battle line.[citation needed]
The earliest attested form of the name is the Mycenaean Greek feminine anthroponym 𐀀𐀩𐀏𐀭𐀅𐀨, a-re-ka-sa-da-ra (transcribed as Alexandra), written in the Linear B syllabic script.[4][5][6]
The name was one of the titles ("epithets") given to the Greek goddess Hera and as such is usually taken to mean "one who comes to save warriors". In the Iliad, the character Paris is known also as Alexander.[7] The name's popularity was spread throughout the Greek world by the military conquests of King Alexander III, commonly known as "Alexander the Great". Most later Alexanders in various countries were directly or indirectly named after him.[citation needed]
People known as Alexander
Alexander has been the name of many rulers, including kings of Macedon, of Scotland, emperors of Russia and popes.
Rulers of antiquity
Alaksandu king of Wilusa who sealed a treaty with Hittite king Muwatalli II ca. 1280 BC.- Alexander (Alexandros of Ilion), more often known as Paris of Troy
Alexander of Corinth, 10th king of Corinth (816–791 BC)- Alexander I of Macedon
- Alexander II of Macedon
Alexander III of Macedon, commonly known as Alexander the Great- Alexander IV of Macedon
- Alexander V of Macedon
Alexander of Pherae despot of Pherae between 369 and 358 BC
Alexander I of Epirus king of Epirus about 342 BC
Alexander II of Epirus king of Epirus 272 BC- Alexander, viceroy of Antigonus Gonatas and ruler of a rump state based on Corinth c. 250 BC
Alexander Balas, ruler of the Seleucid kingdom of Syria between 150 and 146 BC
Alexander Zabinas, ruler of part of the Seleucid kingdom of Syria based in Antioch between 128 and 123 BC
Alexander Jannaeus king of Judea, 103–76 BC
Alexander of Judaea, son of Aristobulus II, king of Judaea
Alexander Severus (208–235), Roman emperor
Julius Alexander, lived in the 2nd century, an Emesene nobleman
Domitius Alexander, Roman usurper who declared himself emperor in 308
Rulers of the Middle Ages
Alexander, Byzantine Emperor (912–913)
Alexander I of Scotland (c. 1078–1124)
Alexander II of Scotland (1198–1249)
Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263), Prince of Novgorod and Grand Prince of Vladimir
Alexander III of Scotland (1241–1286)
Alexander I of Georgia (1412–1442)
Alexander II of Georgia (1483–1510)- Aleksander (1338–before 1386), Prince of Podolia (son of Narymunt)
Alexandru I Aldea, ruler of the principality of Wallachia (1431–1436)
Eskender, Emperor of Ethiopia (1472–1494)
Alexander Jagiellon (Alexander of Poland) (1461–1506), King of Poland
Alexandru Lăpuşneanu, Voivode of Moldavia (1552–1561 and 1564–1568)
Modern rulers
Alexander I of Russia (1777–1825), emperor of Russia
Alexander II of Russia (1818–1881), emperor of Russia
Alexander III of Russia (1845–1894), emperor of Russia
Alexander Karađorđević, Prince of Serbia (1842–1858)
Alexander of Bulgaria (1857–1893), first prince of Bulgaria
Alexandru Ioan Cuza, prince of Romania (1859–1866)
Alexander I Obrenović of Serbia (1876–1903), king of Serbia
Alexander, Prince of Lippe (1831–1905), prince of Lippe
Alexander I of Yugoslavia (1888–1934), first king of Yugoslavia
Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia (born 1945), head of the Yugoslav Royal Family
Zog I, also known as Skenderbeg III (1895–1961), king of Albanians
Alexander of Greece (1893–1920), king of Greece
Leka, Crown Prince of Albania (1939–2011), king of Albanians (throne pretender)
Willem-Alexander, King of the Netherlands (born 1967), eldest child of Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus
Other royalty
Alexander, Judean Prince, one of the sons of Herod the Great from his wife Mariamne
Alexander, Judean Prince, son to the above Alexander and Cappadocian Princess Glaphyra
Alexander (d. 1418), son of Bulgarian tsar Ivan Shishman
Prince Alexander John of Wales (1871), short-lived son of Edward VII
Prince Alexandre of Belgium (1942–2009)
Prince Alexander of Sweden (born 2016), son of Prince Carl Philip
Several other princes have borne the name Alexander:
George V of Hanover (1819–1878)
Prince Alfred of Edinburgh and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (1874–1899)
Prince George, Duke of Kent (1902–1942)
Olav V of Norway (1903–1991)
Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester (born 1944)
Prince George of Cambridge (born 2013)
Religious leaders
Pope Alexander I (pope 97–105)
Alexander of Apamea, 5th-century bishop of Apamea
Pope Alexander II (pope 1058–1061)
Pope Alexander III (pope 1164–1168)
Pope Alexander IV (pope 1243–1254)
Pope Alexander V ("Peter Philarges" c. 1339–1410)
Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503), Roman pope
Pope Alexander VII (1599–1667)
Pope Alexander VIII (pope 1689–1691)
Alexander of Constantinople, bishop of Constantinople (314–337)
St. Alexander of Alexandria, Coptic Pope, Patriarch of Alexandria between 313 and 328
Pope Alexander II of Alexandria, Coptic Pope (702–729)
Alexander of Lincoln, bishop of Lincoln- Alexander of Jerusalem
- See also Saint Alexander, various saints with this name
Other people
Antiquity
Alexander, the name of a number of artists of ancient Greece and Rome
Alexander, 3rd-century BC general, commanded the cavalry under Antigonus III Doson
Alexander of Athens, Athenian comic poet
Alexander Lyncestes, contemporary of Alexander the Great
Alexander Aetolus, poet and member of the Alexandrian Pleiad
Alexander, son of Lysimachus, 3rd-century BC Macedonian royal
Alexander, Aetolian general, briefly conquered Aegira in 220 BC
Alexander, son of Polyperchon, the regent of Macedonia
Alexander Isius, 2nd-century military commander of the Aetolians
Alexander of Acarnania (d. 191 BC), confidante of Antiochus III the Great
Alexander Lychnus, early 1st-century BC poet and historian
Alexander Polyhistor, Greek scholar of the 1st century
Alexander of Myndus, ancient Greek writer on zoology and divination
Alexander of Aegae, peripatetic philosopher of the 1st century
Alexander of Cotiaeum, 2nd-century Greek grammarian and tutor of Marcus Aurelius
Alexander Numenius, or Alexander, son of Numenius, 2nd century AD, Greek rhetorician
Alexander the Paphlagonian, 2nd-century Greek imposter
Alexander Peloplaton, Greek rhetorician of the 2nd century
Alexander of Lycopolis, 4th-century author of an early Christian treatise against Manicheans
Alexander of Aphrodisias, Greek commentator and philosopher
Alexander, a member of the Jerusalem Temple Sanhedrin mentioned in Acts 4:6
Middle Ages
Alexander of Hales, 13th-century Medieval theologian
Modern
Alexander (magician) (1880–1954), stage magician specializing in mentalism
Jeffrey C. Alexander (born 1947), American sociologist
Alexander McQueen (1969–2010), British fashion designer and couturier
Olivinha (born 1983), Brazilian basketball player also known as Alexandre
Alexander Ovechkin (born 1985), Russian hockey player
Given name
Notable people with the given name Alexander or variants include:
Alexander Aigner (1909–1988), Austrian mathematician
Alexander Argov (1914–1995), Russian-born Israeli composer
Alexander Armah (born 1994), American football player
Alexander Armstrong (born 1970), British comedian and singer
Aleksandr Averbukh (born 1974), Israeli pole vaulter
Alex Baldock (born 1970), British businessman
Alec Baldwin (born 1958), American actor
Alexander Graham Bell (1847–1922), Scottish inventor of the first practical telephone
Alexandre Grothendieck (1928–2014), mathematician
Alexander Davidovich (born 1967), Israeli wrestler
Alexander Day, British 18th-century confidence trickster
Aleksandar Djordjevic (born 1967), Serbian basketball player
Alexander Dubček (1921–1992), leader of Czechoslovakia (1968–1969)
Alexandre Dumas (1802–1870), French writer
(Alexandre) Gustave Eiffel (1832–1923), French civil engineer and architect, designer of the Eiffel Tower
Alexander Lee Eusebio (born 1988), also known as Alexander or Xander, South Korean singer, member of U-KISS
Alex Ferguson (born 1941), football player and manager
Alexander Fleming (1881–1955), Scottish discoverer of penicillin
Alexander Zusia Friedman (1897–1943), Polish rabbi, educator, activist, and journalist
Alexander Glazunov (1865–1936), Russian composer
Alexander Gomelsky (1928–2005), Russian head coach of USSR basketball national team for 30 years
Aleksandr Gorelik (born 1945), Soviet figure skater
Alexander Gould (born 1994), American actor
Alexander Gustafsson (born 1987), Swedish mixed martial arts fighter
Alexander Haig (1924–2010), American general and politician
Alexander Hamilton (1755–1804), first United States Secretary of the Treasury and one of the founding fathers of the United States
Alexander Hamilton Jr. (1786–1875), American attorney and son of Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton Jr. (1816–1889), son of James Alexander Hamilton and grandson of Alexander Hamilton
Alex Higgins (1949–2010), Northern Irish snooker player
Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859), Prussian naturalist and explorer
Aleksandr Kogan (born 1985/86), psychologist and data scientist
Alexander Korda (1893–1956), Hungarian film director
Alexander Levinsky (1910–1990), Canadian ice hockey player
Alexander Ivanovich Levitov (1835–1877), Russian writer
Alexander Lévy (born 1990), French golfer
Alexandre Lippmann (1881–1960), French épée fencer
Alexander Ludwig (born 1992), Canadian actor
Alexander "Sandy" Lyle (born 1958), Scottish golfer
Alexander Lukashenko (born 1954), President of Belarus
Alex Manninger (born 1997), Austrian footballer
Alessandro Manzoni (1785–1873), Italian poet and novelist
Alexander "Ali" Marpet (born 1993), American football player
Alexander McQueen (1969–2010), British fashion designer
Alexander Mirsky (born 1964), Latvian politician
Alessandro Moreschi (1858–1922), Italian castrato singer
Alexander Nikolov (born 1940), boxer
Alexander O'Neal (born 1953), American singer
Alexander Ovechkin (born 1985), Russian hockey player
Alexander Patch (1889–1945), American general during World War II
Alexander Pechtold (born 1965), Dutch politician
Alexander Penn (1906–1972), Israeli poet
Alexander Piorkowski (1904–1948), German Nazi SS concentration camp commandant executed for war crimes
Alexander Ponomarenko (born 1964), Russian billionaire businessman
Alexander Pope (1688–1744), English poet
Alexander Popov (born 1971) Russian swimmer
Alexander Ptushko (1900–1973), Russian film director
Alexander Pushkin (1799–1837), Russian writer
Alexander Rendell (born 1990), Thai actor and singer
Alex Rodriguez (born 1975), Major League Baseball star, won 3 AL MVP awards, also known as A-Rod
Alexander Rou (1906–1973), Russian film director
Alexander Rowe (born 1992), Australian athlete
Alexander Rudolph ("Al McCoy"; 1894–1966), American boxer
Alexander Rybak (born 1986), Norwegian artist and violinist
Alexander Salkind (1921–1997), French film producer
Alexander Scriabin (1872–1915), Russian composer and pianist
Alexander Semin (born 1984), Russian hockey player
Alexander Shatilov (born 1987), Uzbek-Israeli artistic gymnast
Alexander Theodore "Sasha" Shulgin (1925–2014), American chemist, psychopharmacologist, and author
Alexander Skarsgård (born 1976), Swedish actor
Alexander McCall Smith (born 1948), Scottish writer
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918–2008), Russian writer, Nobel laureate, Soviet dissident
Lex van Dam (born 1968), Dutch trader and TV personality
Alexander Van der Bellen (born 1944), 12th President of Austria
Alexander Varchenko (born 1949), Russian mathematician
Aleksander Veingold (born 1953), Estonian and Soviet chess player and coach
Alessandro Volta (1745–1827), Italian physicist
Alexander Yusuf, Somali-British architect
Alex Zanardi (born 1966), Italian racing driver and paracyclist
Alexander Zverev Jr. (born 1997), German tennis player
In other languages
Afrikaans: Alexander
Albanian: Aleksandër
Amharic: እስክንድር (Isikinidiri, Eskender)
Ancient Greek: Ἀλέξανδρος (Alexander, Alexandros)
Arabic: اسكندر (Iskandar)
Armenian: Ալեքսանդր (Aleksandr)
Basque: Alesander
Belarusian: Аляксандр (Aliaksandr)
Bengali: আলেকজান্ডার (Ālēkajānḍāra)
Biblical Greek: Αλεξανδρος (Alexandros)
Bosnian: Aleksandar
Bulgarian: Александър (Aleksandŭr)
Catalan: Alexandre/Aleixandre
Chinese: Simplified: 亚历山大 (Yàlìshāndà), Traditional: 亞歷山大 (Yàlìshāndà)
Croatian: Aleksandar
Czech: Alexandr
Danish: Aleksander, Alexander
Dutch: Alexander
Esperanto: Aleksandro
Estonian: Aleksander
English: Alexander
Finnish: Aleksanteri
French: Alexandre
Galician: Alexandre
Georgian: ალექსანდრე (Aleksandre)
German: Alexander
Greek: Αλέξανδρος (Aléxandros)
Hawaiian: Alekanekelo
Hebrew: אלכסנדר (Aleksander)
Hindi: सिकंदर (Sikandar)
Hungarian: Sándor, Alexander
Icelandic: Alexander
Indonesian: Iskandar
Irish: Alastar
Italian: Alessandro
Japanese: アレキサンダー (Arekisandā)
Korean: 알렉산더 (Alleksandeo)
Latin: Alexander
Latvian: Aleksandrs
Lithuanian: Aleksandras
Macedonian: Александар (Aleksandar)
Malay: Iskandar
Mongolian: Александр (Alyeksandr)
Norwegian: Aleksander, Alexander
Pashto: الیکسینډر (Sikandar)
Persian: الکساندر (Eskandar), سکندر (Sikandar)
Polish: Aleksander
Portuguese: Alexandre, Alexandro, Alessandro
Romanian: Alexandru
Russian: Александр (Aleksandr)
Scottish: Alasdair, Alastair, Alistair, Alister
Serbian: Александар (Aleksandar)
Slovak: Alexander
Slovene: Aleksander
Spanish: Alejandro, Alexander
Swedish: Alexander
Thai: อเล็กซานเด (Xlĕksānde)
Turkish: İskender
Ukrainian: Олександр (Olexander, Oleksandr)
Urdu: الیکسینڈر (Sikandar)
Vietnamese: Alexander
Welsh: Alexander
Yiddish: אלעקסאנדער (Aleksander)
See also
- Alex (disambiguation)
- Alexandra
- Justice Alexander (disambiguation)
- All pages beginning with Alexander
Hera Alexandros, epithet of the Greek goddess Hera
References
^ Ἀλέξανδρος. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
^ ἀλέξειν in Liddell and Scott.
^ ἀνήρ in Liddell and Scott.
^ Tablet MY V 659 (61). "The Linear B word a-re-ka-sa-da-ra". Palaeolexicon. Word study tool of ancient languages..mw-parser-output cite.citationfont-style:inherit.mw-parser-output .citation qquotes:"""""""'""'".mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registrationcolor:#555.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration spanborder-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon abackground:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center.mw-parser-output code.cs1-codecolor:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-errordisplay:none;font-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-errorfont-size:100%.mw-parser-output .cs1-maintdisplay:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-formatfont-size:95%.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-leftpadding-left:0.2em.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-rightpadding-right:0.2em
"MY 659 V (61)". DĀMOS Database of Mycenaean at Oslo. University of Oslo.
Raymoure, K.A. "a-re-ka-sa-da-ra-qe". Deaditerranean. Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B.
^ Chadwick, John (1999) [1976]. The Mycenaean World. New York: Cambridge University Press.
^ Mycenaean (Linear B) – English Glossary
^ Ἀλέξανδρος,
Georg Autenrieth, A Homeric Dictionary, on Perseus Digital Library
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