Miriam (given name)
| Miriam |
Miriam is the sister of Moses in the Old Testament and is a prophetess. |
| Gender |
female |
| Origin |
| Word/Name |
Hebrew |
| Meaning |
unknown; various |
| Other names |
| Nickname(s) |
Mimi, Miri |
| Related names |
Maria, Mariamne, Mary, Maryam, Mira, Miryam |
Miriam is an ancient female Hebrew given name (מִרְיָם) that has taken on many other forms in other languages and cultures, including the English name Mary.
Origin and variants
Its earliest appearance in writing may be in the biblical Book of Exodus, in which the elder sister of Moses is called Miriam.
The origin of the Hebrew: מִרְיָם, Modern Miryam Tiberian Miryām is not clear. It may mean "wished-for child", "bitter", "rebellious" or "strong waters". Alternatively, bearing in mind that many Levite names are Egyptian, it might be derived from an Egyptian word myr "beloved" or mr "love",[1][2] or even the derived ancient Egyptian name Meritamen or "Merit-Amun", "beloved of Amun".[3]
Mary, the mother of Jesus, bore a Judeo-Aramaic variant of this name, Maryām (מרים). In the New Testament of the Bible, written in Greek, her name is transformed to Mariam (Μαριάμ) or Maria. Several other women in the New Testament, including Mary Magdalene, are called by the same name. Because of Mary's great significance to two other world religions, variants of her name are often given to girl children in both Christian and Islamic cultures. In the Quran, Mary's name assumed the Arabic form Maryam (مريم), which has also passed into other languages. The Greek variant Maria passed into Latin and many modern European languages.
Variants of the name include Mary, Myriam, Mirjam, Maria, Mariam, Mira and Miri. In Israel, "Mimi" is a common diminutive.[4]
Famous people named Miriam
- Miriam, the sister of Moses
- Miriam (entertainer) (born c. 1981), Mexican transwoman who starred in There's Something About Miriam
- Miriam Ben-Porat (born 1918), Israeli judge and state comptroller
- Miriam Defensor Santiago (born 1945), Senator in the Philippines
- Miriam Flynn (born 1952), American voice artist and character actress
- Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi (born 1961), French world champion slalom canoer
- Miriam Gallardo (born 1968), Peruvian volleyball player
- Miriam Gonzalez (born 1977), Playboy playmate
- Miriam Leslie (1828–1914), American author, publisher, woman suffrage advocate, and philanthropist
- Miriam McDonald (born 1987) Canadian actress, star of Degrassi: The Next Generation
- Miriam Makeba (born 1932), South African singer and activist
- Miriam Margolyes (born 1941), a British actress
- Miriam Pirazzini (born 1918), Italian singer
- Miriam Ramón (born 1973), Ecuadorian racewalker
- Miriam Shaviv (born 1976), literary editor of the Jerusalem Post
- Miriam Stockley (born 1962), English South African-born singer
- Miriam Stoppard (born 1937), British physician, author, television presenter, and agony aunt
- Miriam Toews (born 1964), Canadian author
- Miriam Yalan-Shteklis (1900–84), Israeli writer and poet
- Miriam Yeung (born 1974), Hong Kong singer-actress
- People with the spelling Myriam
- Myriam Abel or Myriam Morea (born Myriam Abdel Hamid, 1981), French singer of Algerian descent
- Myriam Avalos, Peruvian pianist
- Myriam Baverel (born 1981), French martial artist
- Myriam Bédard (born 1969), retired Canadian athlete
- Myriam Birger (born 1951), French pianist
- Myriam Boileau (born 1977), Canadian diver
- Myriam Bru (born 1930), French actress
- Myriam Capes (born 1984), Canadian fitness champion
- Myriam Casanova (born 1985), Swiss tennis player
- Myriam Fares (born 1983), Lebanese singer
- Myriam Flühmann (born 1986), Swiss figure skater
- Myriam Fox-Jerusalmi (born 1961), French canoer
- Myriam Francois-Cerrah (born 1983), British actress
- Myriam Glez (born 1980), French swimmer
- Myriam Hernández (born 1967), Chilean singer-songwriter and television presenter
- Myriam Korfanty (born 1978), French handball player
- Myriam Léonie Mani (born 1977), Cameroonian athlete
- Myriam Leuenberger (born 1987), Swiss figure skater
- Myriam Lignot (born 1975), French synchronized swimmer
- Myriam Marbe (1931–1997), Romanian composer and pianist
- Myriam Merlet (c. 1957–2010), Haitian political activist
- Myriam Montemayor Cruz (born 1981), Mexican pop star known as "Myriam"
- Myriam Moscona (born 1955), Mexican journalist
- Myriam Muller (born 1971), Luxembourgian actress
- Myriam Sarachik (born 1933), Belgian physicist
- Myriam Shehab (born 1982), Lebanese singer known as "Melissa"
- Myriam Sirois (born 1975), Canadian actress
- Myriam Soumaré (born 1986), French athlete
- Myriam Taschereau, Canadian politician
- Myriam Vanlerberghe, Belgian politician
- Myriam Yardeni (born 1932), Romanian-born Israeli historian
Fictional characters
See also
References