Bertha

German

"bright, glorious"

Bertha Origin and Meaning

The name Bertha is a girl's name of German origin meaning "bright, glorious".

Ever since the enormous German cannon was dubbed by Allied soldiers "Big Bertha" in World War I, this name hasn't worked for a sweet little baby girl. But this was not always so. Hard as it might be to imagine now, Bertha was a Top 100 name until the 1930s, and in the 1880s was the seventh most popular name in the land--the equal of Joseph.

Bertha, aka Berchta, was a Teurtonic goddess borrowed from Norse mythology, regarded in her earliest incarnations as a beautiful and benevolent spirit. Bertha is an ancient Germanic name attached to the 6th century Saint Bertha of Kent, who was instrumental in the spread of Christianity, and it was the name of both the mother and daughter of Charlemagne.

In literature, Bertha Mason is the first wife of Rochester in Jane Eyre, and a character in Edith Wharton's The House of Mirth. The French version Berthe is represented by the French Impressionist painter Berthe Morisot. All in all, though, modern parents might do better to consider the Polish version, Berta.

Bertha Rank in US Top 1000

# 958 in the US

Bertha Popularity

• 1108 Nameberry 2023

20 Names Similar to Bertha

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Bertha.

• Ernestine
• Erminie
• Allysiah
• Sindy
• Doris
• Louvinia
• Shantal
• Ethyl
• Abt
• Magritte
• Elgin
• Felipe
• Helga
• Catkin
• Branna
• Irma
• Jaleesa
• Hepzibah
• Tannis
• Javiera

Famous People Named Bertha

• Saint Bertha of Val d'Or abbess of Avenay
• Saint Bertha of Kent Anglo,Saxon queen
• Bertha Felicitas Sophie Freifrau von Suttner Austrian novelist; first woman Nobel Peace Prize winner
• Bertha of Savoy Holy Roman Empress; wife of Henry IV
• Bertha of Holland Queen consort of Philip I of the Franks
• Bertha of Sulzbach Empress consort of Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Comnenus
• Bertha of Swabia Queen consort of Rudolph II of Burgundy
• Bertha Wrenham Wilson first woman Puisne Justice of the Canadian Supreme Court
• Bertha Benz wife of German automaker Karl Benz; first person to drive a car long distance
• Bertha Krupp von Bohlen und Albach German businesswoman
• Bertha Southey Brammall Australian novelist
• Bertha Brainard American TV executive
• Bertha "Chippie" Hill American blues singer
• Bertha Kalich (born Beylke Kalakh) Ukrainian,American Yiddish actress
• Bertha Knight Landes first woman mayor of a major U.S. city (Seattle)
• Bertha Amy Lewis English operatic contralto
• Bertha Mahony American founder of The Horn Book review
• Bertha Matilde Honoré Palmer American businesswoman and socialite
• Bertha Pappenheim aka Anna O. Austrian feminist and Freud patient
• Bertha Lee Pate American blues singer
• Bertha Runkle American novelist
• Bertha Louise Townsend Toulmin American tennis player

Bertha in Pop Culture

• Bertha Antoinetta Mason Edward Rochester's wife in "Jane Eyre"
• Bertha Dorset character in Edith Wharton's "The House of Mirth"
• Bertha Jorkins character in the Harry Potter series
• Bertha character in Fred: The Movie
• Mal Bertha main character in the Disney TV movie "Descendants"
• Bertha Weedon character in Jenny Nimmo's "The Children of the Red King" series
• Bertha Shirley mother of Anne in “Anne of Green Gables” by L. M. Montgomery
• Bertha obese woman in the Garfield comic strip who dated Jon Arbuckle before losing 200 pounds