Gerald

Common card · No. 434940

Gerald is a masculine given name derived from the Germanic languages prefix ger- ("spear") and suffix -wald ("rule"). Gerald is a Norman French variant of the Germanic name. An Old English equivalent name was Garweald, the likely original name of Gerald of Mayo, a British Roman Catholic monk who established a monastery in Mayo, Ireland in 670. Nearly two centuries later, Gerald of Aurillac, a French count, took a vow of celibacy and later became known as the Roman Catholic patron saint of bachelors. The name was in regular use during the Middle Ages but declined after 1300 in England. It remained a common name in Ireland, where it was a common name among the powerful FitzGerald dynasty. The name was revived in the Anglosphere in the 19th century by writers of historical novels along with other names that had been popular in the medieval era. British novelist Ann Hatton published a novel called Gerald Fitzgerald in 1831. Author Dorothea Grubb published her novel Gerald Fitzgerald in 1845...

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