David (English)
Where does "David" come from?
The English given name and surname David travels through a long historical lineage, originating from Biblical Hebrew 'דָּוִד' with the literal meaning 'beloved'[1]. From Hebrew, the name passed into Koine Greek as 'Δαυῑ̈́δ'[1], and subsequently into Late Latin as 'Dāvīd'[1]. The form then entered Old English as 'Dauid'[4], evolving through Middle English 'David'[1] before arriving in modern English. Along its linguistic journey, the name was adopted widely across biblical traditions and cultures, eventually also giving rise to patronymic surnames and place names.
Full etymology tree
- David (English), 'The second king of Judah and Israel, the successor of King Saul in the Hebrew Bible; the son of Jesse and the father of Nathan and King Solomon.'
- inherited David (Middle English)
- inherited Dauid (Old English), 'a male given name, equivalent to English David.'
- inherited David (Latin), 'David'
- inherited Δαυΐδ (Dauḯd) (Ancient Greek), 'David'
- inherited דָּוִד (dāwiḏ) (Biblical Hebrew)
- inherited Δαυΐδ (Dauḯd) (Ancient Greek), 'David'
- inherited David (Latin), 'David'
- inherited Dauid (Old English), 'a male given name, equivalent to English David.'
- inherited David (Middle English)
Ancestors
- Dauid (Old English)
- David (Latin)
- Δαυΐδ (Ancient Greek)
Descendants and derived words
- Barton St David (English)
- Camp David (English)
- David-and-Goliath (English)
- David City (English)
- Davidian (English)
- Davidian (English)
- Davidian (English)
- harp of David (English)
- King David's harp (English)
- Mogen David (English)
- Saint David (English)
- Shield of David (English)
Sources
- David (English) - Wiktionary
- David (Latin) - Wiktionary
- Δαυΐδ (Dauḯd) (Ancient Greek) - Wiktionary
- Dauid (Old English) - Wiktionary
Updated August 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris