Girl Names baby nameElizabeth

What does the name Elizabeth mean?

The meaning of the name “Elizabeth” is: “Consecrated to God; my God is a vow; my God is abundance”.

Additional information: Elizabeth is a feminine Hebrew name meaning ‘God is my oath’, or ‘pledged to God’ as a more modern interpretation, used widely in Greek, English and Hebrew languages. Elizabeth is derived from the Greek girl name Elisabet, 'Ελισάβετ', the Hebrew girl name Εlīsheba and the English girl name Elisabetha. It is a biblical name, in the Old Testament of the Bible, Elisheba was the wife of Aaron. In the New Testament of the Bible, it was given to a kinswoman of the Virgin Mary and mother of John the Baptist. It was also the name of the 12th-century Saint Elizabeth.

The name is associated with royalty, mostly because of the Tudor monarch Elizabeth I, the Windsor monarch Elizabeth II and by an empress of Russia. Common alternative spellings are Elisabeth, Elyzabeth, Elizabeta and Elsabeth, and it has a lot of diminutives and nicknames – these include variants on Bess, Bettie, Eliza, Elsa, Libby, and Lizzie, with Elizabeth II still being called ‘Lilibet’ by family members. It also has a lot of different foreign spellings, which include Elise (Danish), Liesbeth (Dutch), Liesel (German), and Elisabetta (Italian). Common misspellings of Elizabeth are ‘Elizebeth’, ‘Elizibeth’, and ‘Elizbeth’.

The name Elizabeth has seen a slight decrease in popularity as a girls name in the USA since the late nineteenth century, falling from the top ten to the top twenty, but it is still a popular name for girls, ranking at number 10 in USA for 2012 and becoming the fourteenth most popular name in 2014. Elizabeth has also seen sporadic popularity as a masculine name in the USA, in particular at the start of the twentieth century, during the thirties, and during the eighties. The name is surprisingly less popular in England and Wales, considering the long reign of Elizabeth II – the name hasn’t broken into the top thirty most popular names for girls since 1996, and was the 39th most popular name in 2013.

Famous monarchs named Elizabeth include the British Elizabeth I and Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (Queen consort of George VI), Elizabeth of York (Queen consort of Henry VII), and Elizabeth Woodville (Queen consort of Edward IV). Aside from monarchs, famous people named Elizabeth include Elizabeth Barrett Browning (Victorian poet), Elizabeth Fry (English prison worker, and the person on the Bank of England £5 note), and Elizabeth Taylor (British-American actress).

There is an urban legend that George W. Bush, while President of the United States of America, paid a visit to Queen Elizabeth II and took a ride in her horse and carriage; according to legend, one of the horses was flatulent, and when the Queen apologised, George W. Bush assumed that she had been the flatulent one. This story was, in fact, based on a viral joke that emerged shortly after his state visit, and he never took a ride in a carriage drawn by horses, flatulent or otherwise.

Tim Allen & Jane Allen have chosen Elizabeth for their girl's name.