Gender Masculine
Pronounced Pron. EHD-gər(English) EHD-GAR(French)  [key·IPA]

Meaning & History

Derived from the Old English elements ead "wealth, fortune" and gar "spear". This was the name of a 10th-century English king, Edgar the Peaceful. The name did not survive long after the Norman Conquest, but it was revived in the 18th century, in part due to a character by this name in Walter Scott's novel The Bride of Lammermoor (1819), which tells of the tragic love between Edgar Ravenswood and Lucy Ashton [1]. Famous bearers include author and poet Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), French impressionist painter Edgar Degas (1834-1917), and author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950).

Related Names

VariantEdgard(French)
DiminutivesEd, Eddie, Eddy(English)
Other Languages & CulturesEadgar(Anglo-Saxon) Edgardo(Italian) Edgars, Edijs(Latvian) Edgaras(Lithuanian) Édgar, Edgardo(Spanish)
Surname DescendantsAdair, Edgar(English)
Same SpellingÉdgar
User SubmissionEdgár

Popularity

People think this name is

classic   mature   formal   upper class   wholesome   strong   refined   strange   simple   serious  

Name Days

Austria: July 8
Austria: September 9
Estonia: November 29
France: July 8
Norway: November 16
Poland: June 10
Poland: July 8
Sweden: October 31

Images

Portrait of Edgar Allan PoePortrait of Edgar Allan Poe

Categories

Sources & References

  1. Withycombe, Elizabeth Gidley. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names. Oxford, 1945, page 41.
Entry updated January 21, 2022