David
What does the name David mean?
The meaning of the name “David” is: “Beloved”.
Additional information: The name David is a male name of Hebrew origin, with the Hebrew דָּוִד meaning ‘beloved’. David was the name of the second king of Israel - the same David from the Old Testament story of David and Goliath. The name has particular relevance for both Christians and Jews, with the Jewish Star of David being named after this king. David is also the name of the patron saint of Wales who founded various monastic settlements, and is said to have performed several miracles. St David's, where he was buried, is the smallest city in the UK. It has only 2000 residents, but does boast a cathedral.
There are a number of Welsh variant spellings, including Dafydd, Dai, Dewi, and Taffy. Other spellings including Davide (Italian), Dawid (Polish), and Taavi (Finnish). The most common feminine form of David is Davina, and nicknames for both of these names are Dave, Davey, Davie, and Davy. The most common misspelling of David is ‘Daivd’.
David has steadily remained in the top fifty names for boys in the USA, and stayed in the top ten names between 1937 and 1991. Its popularity has declined slightly since the start of the 21st century, but it has stayed in the top twenty. David enjoys high popularity in central and eastern European countries, and was in the top ten in Austria (#3 in 2006), Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Spain (#4 in 2006) and Slovenia during 2014. It has, however, fallen in popularity in the UK; it was the fiftieth most popular name in England and Wales in 2013.
As one of the better known soccer players in the world, David Beckham has contributed much to the popularity of the name David. Other famous people named David are David Schwimmer (actor), David Hasselhoff (actor), and David Letterman (talk show host).
The most popular legend surrounding the patron saint of Wales, St David, suggests that a small hill formed from the ground he stood on while preaching. This led the historian John Davies to remark that he couldn’t think “of any miracle more superfluous” than the creation of another hill in the already hilly country of Wales.
There are a number of Welsh variant spellings, including Dafydd, Dai, Dewi, and Taffy. Other spellings including Davide (Italian), Dawid (Polish), and Taavi (Finnish). The most common feminine form of David is Davina, and nicknames for both of these names are Dave, Davey, Davie, and Davy. The most common misspelling of David is ‘Daivd’.
David has steadily remained in the top fifty names for boys in the USA, and stayed in the top ten names between 1937 and 1991. Its popularity has declined slightly since the start of the 21st century, but it has stayed in the top twenty. David enjoys high popularity in central and eastern European countries, and was in the top ten in Austria (#3 in 2006), Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Spain (#4 in 2006) and Slovenia during 2014. It has, however, fallen in popularity in the UK; it was the fiftieth most popular name in England and Wales in 2013.
As one of the better known soccer players in the world, David Beckham has contributed much to the popularity of the name David. Other famous people named David are David Schwimmer (actor), David Hasselhoff (actor), and David Letterman (talk show host).
The most popular legend surrounding the patron saint of Wales, St David, suggests that a small hill formed from the ground he stood on while preaching. This led the historian John Davies to remark that he couldn’t think “of any miracle more superfluous” than the creation of another hill in the already hilly country of Wales.
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Used in: Armenian speaking countries, Czech speaking countries, Dutch speaking countries, English speaking countries, French speaking countries, Slovak speaking countries, Spanish speaking countries, Welsh speaking countries
Gender: Boy Names
Origins: Hebrew
Starts with: D
