Wednesday
Wednesday Origin and Meaning
Made famous by the iconic and macabre character Wednesday Addams, this name has the spooky and Halloween-inspired feel that some parents might be looking for. The character has appeared in various adaptations of The Addams Family over the years, but the 2022 television series starring Jenna Ortega has given the name an unexpected boost in popularity.
Wednesday originates from the Anglo-Saxon times, when it was known as Wōdnesdæg, or Woden's Day -- Woden being the English equivalent to the Norse god Odin -- who is also linked to the Roman god Mercury. Cartoonist Charles Addams who created the character of Wednesday Addams however chose her name based on the popular Monday's Child rhyme, in which "Wednesday's child is full of woe."
A choice that is gloomy, offbeat, quirky, wordy and celestial all at once, Wednesday has been quietly climbing up the charts since the 60s, but has been gaining increasing momentum. Not only has the newest adaptation made it feel more familiar, but actors Rupert Grint and Georgia Groome chose if for their daughter in 2020,making it feel more usable for everyone else.
Given to 152 girls in the US in 2023, it's not quite so popular as the sunny Sunday yet, but it is on the rise.
Vintage nicknames Wendy and Winnie might make it feel more approachable, or, if you love it but find it a bit much as a given name, Gwendolyn Daisy "Wednesday" perhaps?
- Wednesday Rank in Nameberry Top 1000
- Names Similar to Wednesday
- Famous People Named Wednesday
- Wednesday in Pop Culture
Wednesday Rank in Nameberry Top 1000
Wednesday Popularity
20 Names Similar to Wednesday
Famous People Named Wednesday
- Wendy "Wednesday" MartinAmerican author and cultural critic
- Wednesday Mourningborn Jennifer Lee Smallwood, American model and TV personality ("Oddities: San Francisco")
- Wednesday G. Grint (b 2020)daughter of Rupert Grint and Georgia Groome.
Wednesday in Pop Culture
- Wednesday Addamsdaughter from "The Addams Family"
- Wednesday Settmanone of the septuplets in 2017 film "What Happened to Monday" (AKA: "Seven Sisters")
- Mr. Wednesdaythe personification of Odin in Neil Gaiman's book "American Gods"
- "Wednesday's child is full of woe" nursery rhyme