Gender Masculine
Pronounced Pron. gə-WAYN(English) GAH-win(English)  [key·IPA]

Meaning & History

Meaning uncertain, from the Latin form Gualguainus used in the 12th-century chronicles of Geoffrey of Monmouth (appearing also as Walganus, Gwalguanus and other spellings in different copies of the text), where he is one of the knights who serve his uncle King Arthur. He can be identified with the earlier Welsh hero Gwalchmai, and it is possible that the name derives from Gwalchmai or a misreading of it.

Gawain was a popular hero in medieval tales such as those by Chrétien de Troyes, where his name appears in the French form Gauvain or Gauvains. He is the main character of the 14th-century anonymous poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, in which he accepts a potentially fatal challenge from the mysterious Green Knight.

Related Names

Other Languages & CulturesGavin(English) Gauvain(French) Galvão(Portuguese) Gavin(Scottish)

People think this name is

classic   mature   formal   upper class   natural   wholesome   strong   strange   serious  

Images

Depiction of Sir Gawain (1903)Depiction of Sir Gawain (1903)

Categories

Entry updated December 7, 2022