Dorothy (given name)
Encyclopedia
Dorothy is a female given name from Greek Δωροθέα (Dōrothea) ("gift of the gods") which is derived from the Greek phrase Δώρων Θεός meaning "Gift of God." Although much less common, there are also male equivalents in English such as "Dorie" from the Greek masculine Δωροθέος (Dōrotheos). Also, the given name Theodora
is derived from the same two Greek root words as Dorothy, reversed in order.
Dorothy was most popular in the United States between 1904 and 1940, when it was ranked among the top 10 most popular names given to newborn girls. The name remained among the top 100 most popular names for American girls until 1961. It then declined in popularity and was last ranked among the top 1,000 most popular names for American newborn girls in 2006, when it was ranked in 986th position. There were 235 newborn American girls given the name in 2010. Just 20 American girls were given the variant name Dorothea in 2010.
In fiction:
Theodora
Theodora is a name of Greek origin, meaning "God's gift". It is the feminine form of the Greek name, Θεόδωρος meaning "God's gift" , neuter gender...
is derived from the same two Greek root words as Dorothy, reversed in order.
Dorothy was most popular in the United States between 1904 and 1940, when it was ranked among the top 10 most popular names given to newborn girls. The name remained among the top 100 most popular names for American girls until 1961. It then declined in popularity and was last ranked among the top 1,000 most popular names for American newborn girls in 2006, when it was ranked in 986th position. There were 235 newborn American girls given the name in 2010. Just 20 American girls were given the variant name Dorothea in 2010.
Famous bearers
- Dorothy AllisonDorothy AllisonDorothy Allison is an American writer, speaker, and member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers.-Early life:Dorothy E. Allison was born on April 11, 1949 in Greenville, South Carolina to Ruth Gibson Allison, who was fifteen at the time. Ruth was a poor and unmarried mother who worked as a...
, American writer - Dorothy ArnoldDorothy ArnoldDorothy Harriet Camille Arnold was an American socialite who disappeared while walking in New York City in 1910.-Early life:...
, American socialite who disappeared mysteriously - Dorothy DandridgeDorothy DandridgeDorothy Jean Dandridge was an American actress and popular singer, and was the first African-American to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress...
, actress - Dorothy Catherine FontanaD. C. FontanaDorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana is an American television script writer and story editor, best known for her work on the original Star Trek series.-Work with Gene Roddenberry:...
, screenplay writer - Dorothy GarrodDorothy GarrodDorothy Annie Elizabeth Garrod CBE was a British archaeologist who was the first woman to hold an Oxbridge chair, partly through her pioneering work on the Palaeolithic period. Her father was Sir Archibald Garrod, the physician.-Life:Born in Oxford, she attended Newnham College, Cambridge...
, British archaeologist - Dorothy HamillDorothy HamillDorothy Stuart Hamill is an American figure skater. She is the 1976 Olympic champion in Ladies' Singles and 1976 World Champion.-Early life:...
, figure skater - Dorothy Hodgkin, British biochemist and winner of Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Dorothy LeeDorothy LeeDorothy Lee was an American actress and comedian during the 1930s, usually appearing alongside the popular Wheeler & Woolsey comedy team....
, 1930s American actress-comedian - Dorothy ParkerDorothy ParkerDorothy Parker was an American poet, short story writer, critic and satirist, best known for her wit, wisecracks, and eye for 20th century urban foibles....
, American poet - Dorothy ScharfDorothy ScharfDorothy Scharf was a reclusive art collector who left 51 valuable paintings to the Courtauld Institute in her will. Her collection, containing works by such eminent artists as John Constable and Thomas Gainsborough, covers the "Golden Age" of English painting. Perhaps the most famous work in the...
, English philanthropist - Dorothy StangDorothy StangSister Dorothy Mae Stang, S.N.D., was an American-born, Brazilian member of the Congregation of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. She was murdered in Anapu, a city in the state of Pará, in the Amazon Basin of Brazil...
(1931-2005), Catholic nun of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur - Dorothy SterlingDorothy SterlingDorothy Sterling was a Jewish-American writer and historian.- Biography :She was born and grew up in New York City, attended Wellesley College and graduated from Barnard College in 1934. After college, she worked as a journalist and writer in New York for several years. In 1937 she married Philip...
, American writer - Dorothy VestDorothy VestDorothy Crowe Vest was a world class female tennis player from Jackson, Mississippi. She is the eponym of Jackson's Dorothy Vest Tennis Center.Vest is known for establishing the sport of tennis in Mississippi...
, American female tennis player - Dorothy WordsworthDorothy WordsworthDorothy Mae Ann Wordsworth was an English author, poet and diarist. She was the sister of the Romantic poet William Wordsworth, and the two were close for all of their lives...
, sister of William Wordsworth - Angela Dorothea Merkel, German politician
- Dorothea Douglass, English tennis player
- Dorota Masłowska, Polish writer
- Dorothy Leigh Sayers, writer
- Dorothea Maria LöschDorothea Maria LöschDorothea Maria Lösch, as married Theslöf, , Swedish master mariner. She was the first woman in Sweden to be given the rank of a sea captain....
, Swedish captain - Dorothy GishDorothy GishDorothy Elizabeth Gish was an American actress, and the younger sister of actress Lillian Gish.-Early life:...
, American actress - Dorothy Faye Dunaway, American actress
- Dorota RabczewskaDorota RabczewskaDorota Rabczewska , more commonly known as Doda Elektroda, is a Polish musical artist, among the most successful Polish artists ever in terms of number of prizes won. She was first known as a member of the Polish rock band Virgin...
, Polish rock singer - Dorota NieznalskaDorota NieznalskaDorota Alicja Nieznalska is a Polish visual artist and sculptor.Nieznalska's controversial installation Pasja , which included the placement of an image of the penis upon a metal Greek cross, resulted in a notable scandal, as the display was condemned as immoral and blasphemous by Polish...
, Polish artist - Dorothea von BironDorothea von BironDorothea von Biron, Princess of Courland, self-styled Dorothée de Courlande , was a Baltic German noblewoman. Her mother was Dorothea von Medem, Duchess of Courland, and although her mother's husband, Duke Peter von Biron, acknowledged her as his own, her true father was a Polish statesman...
, a Baltic German noblewoman - Dorothea LangeDorothea LangeDorothea Lange was an influential American documentary photographer and photojournalist, best known for her Depression-era work for the Farm Security Administration...
, American documentary photographer and photojournalist - Dorothy Bush Koch, daughter of the 41st President of the United States George H. W. Bush and sister of George W. Bush, the 43rd President
In fiction:
- Dorothy Ann
- Dorothy Catalonia, a character from the Gundam Wing anime series.
- Dorothy GaleDorothy GaleDorothy Gale is the protagonist of many of the Oz novels by American author L. Frank Baum, and the best friend of Oz's ruler Princess Ozma. Dorothy first appears in Baum's classic children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and reappears in most of its sequels...
, little girl who was blown to the Land of Oz by a cyclone in L. Frank Baum's 1900 book The Wonderful Wizard of OzThe Wonderful Wizard of OzThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz is a children's novel written by L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. Originally published by the George M. Hill Company in Chicago on May 17, 1900, it has since been reprinted numerous times, most often under the name The Wizard of Oz, which is the name of...
and the classic 1939 movie adaptation The Wizard of OzThe Wizard of Oz (1939 film)The Wizard of Oz is a 1939 American musical fantasy film produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was directed primarily by Victor Fleming. Noel Langley, Florence Ryerson and Edgar Allan Woolf received credit for the screenplay, but there were uncredited contributions by others. The lyrics for the songs... - Dorothy Michaels (Michael D'Orsay), female role in the 1982 comedy film TootsieTootsieTootsie is a 1982 American comedy film that tells the story of a talented but volatile actor whose reputation for being difficult forces him to go to extreme lengths to land a job. The movie stars Dustin Hoffman and Jessica Lange, with a supporting cast that includes Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman,...
, played by Dustin HoffmanDustin HoffmanDustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
. - Dorothy ZbornakDorothy ZbornakDorothy Hollingsworth , is a fictional character from the TV series The Golden Girls, portrayed by Bea Arthur for 7 years and 183 episodes. Dorothy was the strong, sarcastic, sometimes intimidating, and arguably most grounded of the four women in the house...
, played by Bea Arthur on the long-running TV sitcom The Golden Girls - R. Dorothy Wayneright, female android in the anime series Big O
- Dot BranningDot BranningDorothy "Dot" Branning is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera, EastEnders, played by June Brown since 1985. In a special episode entitled EastEnders: Dot's Story a young Dot was played by Tallulah Pitt-Brown in flashbacks. Dot first appeared in EastEnders in July 1985 as the mother of...
, fictional character on the television show EastEnders