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DEIRDRE
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Gender: Feminine
Usage: English, Irish, Irish Mythology
Pronounced: DER-dre (Irish), DEER-drə (English), DEER-dree (English) [key]
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From the older Gaelic form Derdriu, meaning unknown, possibly derived from a Celtic word meaning "woman". This was the name of a tragic character in Irish legend who died of a broken heart after Conchobhar, the king of Ulster, forced her to be his bride and killed her lover Naoise. It has only been commonly used as a given name since the 20th century, influenced by two plays featuring the character: William Butler Yeats' 'Deirdre' (1907) and J. M. Synge's 'Deirdre of the Sorrows' (1910). |
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