Gordon (given name)
Encyclopedia
Gordon is a masculine given name
in the English
language. The name is derived from the Scottish surname Gordon. It is uncertain if this surname originated from a place name in Scotland
or in France
. The Gordon in Berwickshire
, where the family
who bore the surname held lands in the 12th century, is of uncertain etymology
. It is also possible that this place name was named after settlers from France
, who were named after like-named place in Normandy
. The surname is thought to have been taken up as a given name in honour of the Major-General Charles George Gordon
, a British army officer who was killed in 1885, in Khartoum
.
Gordon originates from a transferred use of the Scottish surname Gordon. The origin of this surname is debated. While it is considered to be derived from a place name, it is not certain that the place name of Gordon, in Berwickshire
, Scotland
is the origin of the surname. Berwickshire was the once the home of Clan Gordon
, and the earliest member of the family on record is of Richer de Gordun, who was lord of the barony of Gordon, in the mid 12th century. This place name may be derived from the Welsh
gor, meaning "spacious"; and din, meaning "fort".
However, it is also possible that the Scottish surname originated from a place name in Normandy
, France
, and was brought over to Scotland, where it gave rise to the place name in Berwickshire. For example, the English surname Gordon is considered to be derived from Gourdon
in Saône-et-Loire
, France
. Early records of this surname occur in England in the early 13th century (such as Adam de Gurdon, in 1204). This French place name is derived from the Gallo-Roman personal name
Gordus and the locative suffix
-o, -onis.
The given name is thought to have been used in honour of Major-General Charles George Gordon
(1833–85), who was killed at Khartoum
.
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
in the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
language. The name is derived from the Scottish surname Gordon. It is uncertain if this surname originated from a place name in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
or in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The Gordon in Berwickshire
Berwickshire
Berwickshire or the County of Berwick is a registration county, a committee area of the Scottish Borders Council, and a lieutenancy area of Scotland, on the border with England. The town after which it is named—Berwick-upon-Tweed—was lost by Scotland to England in 1482...
, where the family
Clan Gordon
Clan Gordon, also known as the House of Gordon, is a Scottish clan. The chief of the clan was the powerful Earl of Huntly, now also Marquess of Huntly.-Origins:...
who bore the surname held lands in the 12th century, is of uncertain etymology
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
. It is also possible that this place name was named after settlers from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, who were named after like-named place in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
. The surname is thought to have been taken up as a given name in honour of the Major-General Charles George Gordon
Charles George Gordon
Major-General Charles George Gordon, CB , known as "Chinese" Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator....
, a British army officer who was killed in 1885, in Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
.
Origin of the name
The given nameGiven name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
Gordon originates from a transferred use of the Scottish surname Gordon. The origin of this surname is debated. While it is considered to be derived from a place name, it is not certain that the place name of Gordon, in Berwickshire
Berwickshire
Berwickshire or the County of Berwick is a registration county, a committee area of the Scottish Borders Council, and a lieutenancy area of Scotland, on the border with England. The town after which it is named—Berwick-upon-Tweed—was lost by Scotland to England in 1482...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
is the origin of the surname. Berwickshire was the once the home of Clan Gordon
Clan Gordon
Clan Gordon, also known as the House of Gordon, is a Scottish clan. The chief of the clan was the powerful Earl of Huntly, now also Marquess of Huntly.-Origins:...
, and the earliest member of the family on record is of Richer de Gordun, who was lord of the barony of Gordon, in the mid 12th century. This place name may be derived from the Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
gor, meaning "spacious"; and din, meaning "fort".
However, it is also possible that the Scottish surname originated from a place name in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and was brought over to Scotland, where it gave rise to the place name in Berwickshire. For example, the English surname Gordon is considered to be derived from Gourdon
Gourdon, Saône-et-Loire
Gourdon is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France.-References:*...
in Saône-et-Loire
Saône-et-Loire
Saône-et-Loire is a French department, named after the Saône and the Loire rivers between which it lies.-History:When it was formed during the French Revolution, as of March 4, 1790 in fulfillment of the law of December 22, 1789, the new department combined parts of the provinces of southern...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. Early records of this surname occur in England in the early 13th century (such as Adam de Gurdon, in 1204). This French place name is derived from the Gallo-Roman personal name
Personal name
A personal name is the proper name identifying an individual person, and today usually comprises a given name bestowed at birth or at a young age plus a surname. It is nearly universal for a human to have a name; except in rare cases, for example feral children growing up in isolation, or infants...
Gordus and the locative suffix
Suffix
In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns or adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs...
-o, -onis.
The given name is thought to have been used in honour of Major-General Charles George Gordon
Charles George Gordon
Major-General Charles George Gordon, CB , known as "Chinese" Gordon, Gordon Pasha, and Gordon of Khartoum, was a British army officer and administrator....
(1833–85), who was killed at Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
.
Variants, cognates
The masculine given name can be represented in Scottish Gaelic as Gòrdan.List of people with the given name
- Gordon AllportGordon AllportGordon Willard Allport was an American psychologist. Allport was one of the first psychologists to focus on the study of the personality, and is often referred to as one of the founding figures of personality psychology...
, American psychologist - Gordon BajnaiGordon BajnaiGyörgy Gordon Bajnai was the seventh Prime Minister of Hungary from 2009 to 2010. In March 2009, following Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsány's announced resignation, Bajnai was nominated by the ruling MSZP party to become Hungary's next prime minister...
, Hungarian politician, ex-Prime Minister of Hungary - Gordon BanksGordon BanksGordon Banks, OBE is a retired English football goalkeeper. The IFFHS named Banks the second best goalkeeper of the 20th century – after Lev Yashin and ahead of Dino Zoff ....
(born 1937), English football player - Gordon BrownGordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
, Scottish politician, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom - Gordon BurgessGordon BurgessGordon Charles Burgess was born 4 October, 1918 in Waihi and 3 September, 2000 in Auckland. He was a New Zealand cricketer who played seven first-class matches for the Auckland Aces. He was the father of Test cricketer Mark Burgess.-External Links:...
(born 1935), president of Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana - Gordon CampbellGordon CampbellGordon Muir Campbell, is a Canadian diplomat and politician, who is currently serving as Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He previously served as the 34th Premier of British Columbia from 2001 to 2011...
(disambiguation) - Gordon Childe (the full name is Vere Gordon Childe), Australian archaeologist
- Gordon Stanley "Mickey" CochraneMickey CochraneGordon Stanley "Mickey" Cochrane was a professional baseball player and manager. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics and Detroit Tigers...
(1903–1962), American baseball player - Gordon CooperGordon CooperLeroy Gordon Cooper, Jr. , also known as Gordon Cooper, was an American aeronautical engineer, test pilot and NASA astronaut. Cooper was one of the seven original astronauts in Project Mercury, the first manned space effort by the United States...
(1927–2004), American astronaut - Gordon R. DicksonGordon R. DicksonGordon Rupert Dickson was an American science fiction author.- Biography :Dickson was born in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1923. After the death of his father, he moved with his mother to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1937...
, American science fiction author - Gordon FrickersGordon FrickersGordon Frickers is a marine artist based in Plymouth, Devon, but also paints in France. Frickers was the first marine artist to be exhibited at the European Parliament in Brussels in May 2011...
, English marine, aviation and landscape artist - Gordon GettyGordon GettyGordon Peter Getty was born on December 20, 1934. He is the fourth child of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty. His mother, Ann Rork, was his father's third wife. When his father died in 1976, Gordon assumed control of Getty's US$2 billion trust...
, fourth child of oil tycoon J. Paul Getty - Gordon GouldGordon GouldGordon Gould was an American physicist who is widely, but not universally, credited with the invention of the laser. Gould is best known for his thirty-year fight with the United States Patent and Trademark Office to obtain patents for the laser and related technologies...
, American physicist - Gordon HaywardGordon HaywardGordon Daniel Hayward , is an American basketball player for the Utah Jazz. He played college basketball at Butler University in Indianapolis for two seasons before leaving for the NBA. Hayward emerged as a superstar in his sophomore year, leading his team to a runner-up finish in the 2010 NCAA...
(born 1990), American basketball player - Cornelis Willem Gordon HeuckerothGordon HeuckerothCornelis Willem Heuckeroth is a Dutch performer and radio and television personality, better known by his nickname Gordon...
, better known under his artist name Gordon, a Dutch singer and radio- and television presenter - Gordon B. HinckleyGordon B. HinckleyGordon Bitner Hinckley was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from March 12, 1995 until his death...
(1910–2008), the 15th president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints - Gordon HookeyGordon HookeyGordon Hookey is an Australian aboriginal artist from the Waanyi people. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts and lives in Home Hill, Australia.Hookey has been exhibited in the Sydney Biennale with Paranoia Annoy Ya...
(b. 1961), an Australian aboriginal artist - Gordon HoweGordie HoweGordon "Gordie" Howe, OC is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player who played for the Detroit Red Wings and Hartford Whalers of the National Hockey League , and the Houston Aeros and New England Whalers in the World Hockey Association . Howe is often referred to as Mr...
(born 1928), Canadian hockey player - G. Gordon LiddyG. Gordon LiddyGeorge Gordon Liddy was the chief operative for the White House Plumbers unit that existed from July–September 1971, during Richard Nixon's presidency. Separately, along with E. Howard Hunt, Liddy organized and directed the Watergate burglaries of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in...
(born 1930), jointly organised the first break-in of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate scandal - Gordon Karacic Bosnian Entrepreneur
- Gordon LightfootGordon LightfootGordon Meredith Lightfoot, Jr. is a Canadian singer-songwriter who achieved international success in folk, folk-rock, and country music, and has been credited for helping define the folk-pop sound of the 1960s and 1970s...
, Canadian singer and songwriter - Gordon LishGordon LishGordon Jay Lish is an American writer. As a literary editor, he championed many American authors, particularly Raymond Carver, Barry Hannah, Amy Hempel, and Richard Ford.-Early life and family:...
, American writer - Gordon Matta-ClarkGordon Matta-ClarkGordon Matta-Clark was an American artist best known for his site-specific artworks he made in the 1970s. He is famous for his "building cuts," a series of works in abandoned buildings in which he variously removed sections of floors, ceilings, and walls.-Life and work:Both of Gordon Matta-Clark's...
, American artist - Gordon Edison McQueen, Hong Kong-born artist
- Gordon MoakesGordon MoakesGordon Peter Moakes is an English multi-instrumentalist and backing vocalist for English indie rock band Bloc Party.-Bloc Party:...
, English musician, member of Bloc Party - Gordon MooreGordon MooreGordon Earle Moore is the co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of Intel Corporation and the author of Moore's Law .-Life and career:...
, American businessman - Gordon MurrayGordon MurrayProf. Gordon Murray , is a renowned designer of Formula One race cars and the McLaren F1 road car.-Early life:...
, South African designer of Formula One race cars - Gordon OwenGordon OwenGordon Owen is an English former professional footballer.-Career:A much travelled player, Owen began his career at Sheffield Wednesday, featuring in the clubs promotion winning season under Jack Charlton in 1979-80...
, English footballer - Gordon ParksGordon ParksGordon Roger Alexander Buchanan Parks was a groundbreaking American photographer, musician, poet, novelist, journalist, activist and film director...
, American photographer and film director - Gordon PaskGordon PaskAndrew Gordon Speedie Pask was an English cybernetician and psychologist who made significant contributions to cybernetics, instructional psychology, experimental epistemology and educational technology....
, English cybernetician and psychologist - Gordon RamsayGordon RamsayGordon James Ramsay, OBE is a Scottish chef, television personality and restaurateur. He has been awarded 13 Michelin stars....
, Scottish celebrity chef - Gordon ScottGordon ScottGordon Scott was an American film and television actor known for his portrayal of the fictional character Tarzan in five films of the Tarzan film series from 1955 to 1960.-Early life, education and military service:He was born Gordon Merrill Werschkul in Portland,...
, American actor primarily known for playing Tarzan in theatrical films of mid- to late-50's - Gordon SlethaugGordon SlethaugGordon E. Slethaug is an American Canadian professor of English currently working at the University of Southern Denmark, Campus Kolding. He was the head of the American Studies Programme at the University of Hong Kong. He worked also at the University of Waterloo at Waterloo, Ontario,...
, American Professor of English - Gordon SmileyGordon SmileyGordon Eugene Smiley was an American race car driver from Omaha, Nebraska who was killed in a single-car crash at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He was inducted into the Nebraska Auto Racing Hall of Fame in 2000....
(1946–1982), American race car driver - Gordon Smith (disambiguation)Gordon Smith (disambiguation)-In politics:*Gordon H. Smith , former U.S. Senator from Oregon*Gordon Scott Smith, former Canadian ambassador to the European Union-In sports:*Gordon Smith , tight end with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings during the 1960s...
- Gordon StrachanGordon StrachanGordon David Strachan OBE is a Scottish football manager and former player. He is currently without a club, having last managed Middlesbrough. Strachan played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. Prior to Middlesbrough,...
, Scottish football player and manager - Gordon Sumner, (born 1951), better known as Sting, a pop music singer.
- Gordon WallerGordon WallerGordon Trueman Riviere Waller was a Scottish singer–songwriter–guitarist, best known as "Gordon" of the 1960s duo Peter and Gordon, whose biggest hit was "A World Without Love".-Biography:...
(1945–2009), singer-songwriter-guitarist, best known as "Gordon" from the 1960s duo Peter and Gordon - R. Gordon Wasson, American psychedelic writer
- Gordon Woltman, American professional poker player
Fictional characters
- Gordon, minor character in Rent (musical)Rent (musical)Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
- Gordon FreemanGordon FreemanGordon Freeman is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the Half-Life video game series. He is a theoretical physicist who finds himself thrust into a battle for survival against both alien and human forces. Throughout the series, Gordon must prevail in hostile situations despite...
, the main protagonist of Half-LifeHalf-Life (series)The Half-Life series of video games share a science fiction alternate history. Nearly all of the games are first-person shooters on the GoldSource or Source engines, and most are linear, narrative, single-player titles.... - Gordon GekkoGordon GekkoGordon Gekko is the main antagonist of the 1987 film Wall Street and the antihero of the 2010 film Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, both by director Oliver Stone...
, Protagonist Wall Street - Gordon Shumway, the extraterrestrial lead in the U.S. sitcom ALFALF (TV series)ALF is an American science fiction sitcom that originally aired on NBC from 1986 to 1990, created by Paul Fusco. The title character was Gordon Shumway, a friendly extraterrestrial nicknamed ALF , who crash lands in the garage of the suburban middle-class Tanner family.The series starred Max...
- Gordon "Gordie" Lacahnce,the main character from Stephen King's "The BodyThe Body (novella)The Body, or Fall from Innocence, is a novella by Stephen King, originally published in King's 1982 collection Different Seasons and in 1986 adapted into the acclaimed film Stand by Me...
" and Stand By MeStand by Me (film)Stand by Me is a 1986 American drama film directed by Rob Reiner. Based on the novella The Body by Stephen King, the film takes its title from the Ben E. King song of the same name, which plays over the end credits.-Plot:...
(film)