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HelpNames I like (and meanings)
in reply to a message by Buneary
Here are the names I like:
Babiole
Graciosa
Léandre
Gentille
Merveilleuse (Miranda)
Patypata
Grabugeon
(Toutebelle, Bellissima)
Florine
Fortunée
Avenant
Joliette
Désirée
Giroflée
(Cerisette)
Printanière
Carabosse
Rosette
Lionne
Brillante
Bénigne
(Florimond)
Alidor
Ismene
Zelonide
Marthesie
Aimée
Aimé
Tourmentine
Linda
Roussette
Belle-Etoile
Petit-Soleil
Chéri
Fortuné
Florida
Constancia
Constancio
Mirtain (m)
Bellotte (f)
Here are the meanings that I am aware of:
Babiole: "useless thing" (originally meant trinket) - both the original and current meaning are probably applicable
Fleur d'Amour: "flower of love"
Belle-de-Nuit: "beauty of night"
Fine-Oreille: "delicate ear" (or something like that)
Finette Cendron: "cunning cinders"
Chéri: "darling" - a few other fairy tales not by Madame d'Aulnoy have characters named Chéri, the most notable being the title character of Jeanne-Marie Leprince Le Beaumont's Le Prince Chéri (known in English as Prince Darling)
Gracieuse (Graciosa): "gracious" - technically the French word is gracieux; this is a feminization. Graciosa is used in Andrew Lang's version in The Red Fairy Book, as well as her English name in most translations.
Grognon: grumpy - Grognon is the antagonist of this story. She is Graciosa's stepmother.
Furibon: probably derived from the French word for furious (furibond)
Gentille: "kind"
Abricotine: "apricot-plum". Some older translations call her Abricotina.
Blondine: "blond" combined with a feminine suffix
Merveilleuse (Miranda): Merveilleuse means "marvelous" in French.
Grabugeon: derived from the French word for mayhem, "grabuge" (Grabugeon is a monkey.) Miranda is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Tintin: The literal meaning of this in French is "nothing doing". I'm not sure if that was what d'Aulnoy had in mind. (This particular Tintin is a dog. Obviously no relation to the more famous Tintin created by Hergé.)
Ragotte: "gossip"
The Yellow Dwarf:
Toute-Belle (Toutebelle, Bellissima): "all-beautiful" in French. She is called Bellissima in Andrew Lang's version. Many earlier Victorian translations simply called her All-Fair.
The Blue Bird:
Florine: in the story, she is named after the goddess Flora. She is known as Florina in some translations.
Truitonne: "trout" combined with a feminine suffix. Truitonne is the main villain; she's Florine's stepsister. At the end, she is turned into a sow ("truie" in French) as punishment.
Charmant (Charming): Charmant is "charming" in French. This may possibly be the original inspiration for the term "Prince Charming", though technically this Charming is a king, not a prince. (Charming is presumably in his teens or possibly early twenties - definitely not old like the kings in Disney movies.)
Soussio (Mazilla): Mazilla is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
The White Cat:
Violente: "violent"
Fortunée (Felicia and the Pot of Pinks):
Fortunée (Felicia): French form of Fortunata, meaning "fortunate". Felicia is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Belle aux Cheveux d'Or: "beautiful golden-haired". True to her name, she has long, curly blonde hair reaching past her waist.
Avenant (Charming): Avenant means "comely".
Joliette (Delicia): "pretty" combined with a diminutive suffix, so "little pretty" is the literal meaning. She is born halfway through the story. Delicia is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Cancaline (f)
Giroflée (Gilliflower, Eglantine): Giroflée/Gilliflower is a kind of flower (and so is Eglantine).
Longue Épine (Long-Thorn, Cerisette): Long-Thorn is a literal translation of Longue Épine. Cerisette means "little cherry".
Printanière (Mayblossom): "springlike" in French.
Fanfarinet (Fanfaronade): A fanfaronade is like an arrogant boast. Fanfarinet is a handsome but evil ambassador in this story. In the older versions of this story, Mayblossom stabs him in the eye when he tries to kill her. (Madame d'Aulnoy's intended audience was actually adults, not kids.)
Moufette (Muffette): "skunk". Madame d'Aulnoy makes frequent references to non-European animals (such as turkeys in The Little Good Mouse and The Yellow Dwarf, ostriches in The White Doe and The White Cat, camels in The Bee and the Orange Tree, and peacocks in Princess Rosette).
The Golden Branch:
Torticoli (Curlicue): "torticollis". Curlicue (his name in Andrew Lang's version) is a twisting shape.
Trognon (Cabbage-Stalk): Trognon means "apple core". Cabbage-Stalk is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Brillante (Radiant, Sunbeam): "brilliant".
Bénigne (Goodheart, Douceline): "benign". Douceline derives from the French word for sweet.
Marcassin: A marcassin is a young wild boar.
Tourmentine: "torment" combined with a feminine suffix. It's a kind of herb in French folklore.
Princess Belle-Etoile:
Roussette: "redhead" combined with a feminine suffix. In modern French it means "flying fox" (a kind of bat).
Brunette: Exactly what it says. "brunette"
Feintise: "feintise" is an archaic French word for deceit.
Belle-Etoile: "beautiful star"
Petit-Soleil: "little sun"
Heureux: "happy"
Belle-Belle: It's basically "beautiful" twice.
Fortuné: French form of Fortunatus.
Laideronnette (Laidronette): "laideron" means ugly young woman in French. Laidronette is the protagonist of the story. She is cursed to be ugly.
Bellotte: "beautiful" combined with a diminutive suffix.
Babiole
Graciosa
Léandre
Gentille
Merveilleuse (Miranda)
Patypata
Grabugeon
(Toutebelle, Bellissima)
Florine
Fortunée
Avenant
Joliette
Désirée
Giroflée
(Cerisette)
Printanière
Carabosse
Rosette
Lionne
Brillante
Bénigne
(Florimond)
Alidor
Ismene
Zelonide
Marthesie
Aimée
Aimé
Tourmentine
Linda
Roussette
Belle-Etoile
Petit-Soleil
Chéri
Fortuné
Florida
Constancia
Constancio
Mirtain (m)
Bellotte (f)
Here are the meanings that I am aware of:
Babiole: "useless thing" (originally meant trinket) - both the original and current meaning are probably applicable
Fleur d'Amour: "flower of love"
Belle-de-Nuit: "beauty of night"
Fine-Oreille: "delicate ear" (or something like that)
Finette Cendron: "cunning cinders"
Chéri: "darling" - a few other fairy tales not by Madame d'Aulnoy have characters named Chéri, the most notable being the title character of Jeanne-Marie Leprince Le Beaumont's Le Prince Chéri (known in English as Prince Darling)
Gracieuse (Graciosa): "gracious" - technically the French word is gracieux; this is a feminization. Graciosa is used in Andrew Lang's version in The Red Fairy Book, as well as her English name in most translations.
Grognon: grumpy - Grognon is the antagonist of this story. She is Graciosa's stepmother.
Furibon: probably derived from the French word for furious (furibond)
Gentille: "kind"
Abricotine: "apricot-plum". Some older translations call her Abricotina.
Blondine: "blond" combined with a feminine suffix
Merveilleuse (Miranda): Merveilleuse means "marvelous" in French.
Grabugeon: derived from the French word for mayhem, "grabuge" (Grabugeon is a monkey.) Miranda is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Tintin: The literal meaning of this in French is "nothing doing". I'm not sure if that was what d'Aulnoy had in mind. (This particular Tintin is a dog. Obviously no relation to the more famous Tintin created by Hergé.)
Ragotte: "gossip"
The Yellow Dwarf:
Toute-Belle (Toutebelle, Bellissima): "all-beautiful" in French. She is called Bellissima in Andrew Lang's version. Many earlier Victorian translations simply called her All-Fair.
The Blue Bird:
Florine: in the story, she is named after the goddess Flora. She is known as Florina in some translations.
Truitonne: "trout" combined with a feminine suffix. Truitonne is the main villain; she's Florine's stepsister. At the end, she is turned into a sow ("truie" in French) as punishment.
Charmant (Charming): Charmant is "charming" in French. This may possibly be the original inspiration for the term "Prince Charming", though technically this Charming is a king, not a prince. (Charming is presumably in his teens or possibly early twenties - definitely not old like the kings in Disney movies.)
Soussio (Mazilla): Mazilla is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
The White Cat:
Violente: "violent"
Fortunée (Felicia and the Pot of Pinks):
Fortunée (Felicia): French form of Fortunata, meaning "fortunate". Felicia is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Belle aux Cheveux d'Or: "beautiful golden-haired". True to her name, she has long, curly blonde hair reaching past her waist.
Avenant (Charming): Avenant means "comely".
Joliette (Delicia): "pretty" combined with a diminutive suffix, so "little pretty" is the literal meaning. She is born halfway through the story. Delicia is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Cancaline (f)
Giroflée (Gilliflower, Eglantine): Giroflée/Gilliflower is a kind of flower (and so is Eglantine).
Longue Épine (Long-Thorn, Cerisette): Long-Thorn is a literal translation of Longue Épine. Cerisette means "little cherry".
Printanière (Mayblossom): "springlike" in French.
Fanfarinet (Fanfaronade): A fanfaronade is like an arrogant boast. Fanfarinet is a handsome but evil ambassador in this story. In the older versions of this story, Mayblossom stabs him in the eye when he tries to kill her. (Madame d'Aulnoy's intended audience was actually adults, not kids.)
Moufette (Muffette): "skunk". Madame d'Aulnoy makes frequent references to non-European animals (such as turkeys in The Little Good Mouse and The Yellow Dwarf, ostriches in The White Doe and The White Cat, camels in The Bee and the Orange Tree, and peacocks in Princess Rosette).
The Golden Branch:
Torticoli (Curlicue): "torticollis". Curlicue (his name in Andrew Lang's version) is a twisting shape.
Trognon (Cabbage-Stalk): Trognon means "apple core". Cabbage-Stalk is her name in Andrew Lang's version.
Brillante (Radiant, Sunbeam): "brilliant".
Bénigne (Goodheart, Douceline): "benign". Douceline derives from the French word for sweet.
Marcassin: A marcassin is a young wild boar.
Tourmentine: "torment" combined with a feminine suffix. It's a kind of herb in French folklore.
Princess Belle-Etoile:
Roussette: "redhead" combined with a feminine suffix. In modern French it means "flying fox" (a kind of bat).
Brunette: Exactly what it says. "brunette"
Feintise: "feintise" is an archaic French word for deceit.
Belle-Etoile: "beautiful star"
Petit-Soleil: "little sun"
Heureux: "happy"
Belle-Belle: It's basically "beautiful" twice.
Fortuné: French form of Fortunatus.
Laideronnette (Laidronette): "laideron" means ugly young woman in French. Laidronette is the protagonist of the story. She is cursed to be ugly.
Bellotte: "beautiful" combined with a diminutive suffix.
This message was edited 8/17/2014, 12:27 PM
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