- Muriel (given name)
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Muriel 
Muriel is an English name derived from Celtic elements meaning "sea" and "bright"Pronunciation /ˈmjʊəriəl/ Gender Feminine Language(s) English Origin Language(s) Celtic Other names Cognate(s) Muireall (Scottish Gaelic), Muirgheal (Irish) Muriel, pronounced /ˈmjʊəriəl/,[1] is a feminine given name in the English language.
Contents
Etymology
The name is derived from a Celtic language name composed of word elements meaning "sea" and "bright". Forms of Muriel are found in the Breton, Irish, and Scottish Gaelic languages. In the form Merial, the name was very common in mediaeval England. Muriel was mainly used in Scotland at first, although the name became popular outside the country in the early 20th century.[2]
A Scottish Gaelic form of the name is Muireall; and Irish form of the name is Muirgheal.[2]
Popularity
The name's modern usage in the English speaking world dates from the mid-19th century being initiated or augmented by its appearance in Dinah Craik's 1856 novel John Halifax, Gentleman in which the title character's daughter is named Muriel; born in 1802 Muriel is said to be named "after the rather peculiar name of John's mother."[3]
Usage of Muriel peaked in the early 1920s and has subsequently declined[4]
List of persons with the given name
- Muriel Anderson, American guitarist
- Muriel Angelus, British stage and film actress
- Muriel Barbery, French novelist (born Morocco)
- Muriel Box, pioneer female screenwriter/film director (b. England)
- Muriel Beaumont, 19th century English actress
- Muriel Brunskill, British contralto
- Muriel Day, Irish singer
- Muriel Duckworth (1908-2009), Canadian activist
- Muriel Rukeyser (1913–1980), American poet and political activist
- Muriel Pavlow, British film actress
- Muriel Smith, American mezz-soprano
- Muriel Spark (1919-2006), British novelist
- male namesake Muriel Gustavo Becker, Brazilian footballer
List of fictional characters with the given name
- Muriel, a wise old goat in George Orwell's famous novel Animal Farm
- Muriel, hotel maid who was a recurring character in the family sitcom The Suite Life of Zack & Cody
- Muriel Bagge, a main character in Courage the Cowardly Dog
- Muriel Heslop, lead character in the 1994 iconic Australian film Muriel's Wedding
- Muriel McComber, teenage lead role in the Eugene O'Neill play Ah, Wilderness! (1933)
- Muriel Pritchett, character in the Anne Tyler novel The Accidental Tourist (1985)
- Muriel Rush, female lead role in the sitcom Too Close for Comfort
- Muriel Stacy, Anne's teacher in Anne of Green Gables, which had a big influence upon the development of the main character
- Chandler Muriel Bing, one of the male lead roles in the US TV sitcom Friends (1994-2004)
References
- ^ Muriel, Dictionary.com, http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Muriel, retrieved 4 February 2011 which cited: Dictionary.com Unabridged, Random House.
- ^ a b Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006), A Dictionary of First Names, Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, pp. 199, 352, 406, ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
- ^ Dinah Craik John Halifax, Gentleman Kessinger Publishing p. 262
- ^ http://www.babynamespedia.com/meaning/Muriel
See also
- List of Irish-language given names
This page or section lists people that share the same given name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article. Categories:- English-language feminine given names
- Scottish feminine given names
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