Guadalupe

Where the name comes from

• Spanish (from a place name of Hispano-Arabic origin)
  Named after Guadalupe, a town and river in western Spain. The place name most likely means "valley of the wolves."
  Hispano-Arabic wādī-al-lubb, most likely from Arabic wādī "valley, riverbed" + Latin lupi "wolves"
  The name began as a place name in the Cáceres province of Extremadura, Spain. Its second part is debated. A standard American surname dictionary calls the Arabic-plus-Latin reading the "most likely" one. So the wolf meaning is a strong scholarly view, but it is not certain. Popular meanings such as "river of light," "hidden river," and "river of love" are not backed by the scholarly sources used here.
• Spanish (Catholic Marian name)
  Honors the Virgin Mary as Our Lady of Guadalupe
  Short form of María de Guadalupe or Virgen de Guadalupe
  As a personal name, Guadalupe usually honors Mary under this title. The title came first from the Spanish shrine. It later became tied to Mary's appearance in Mexico, about 495 years ago. Some popular accounts say the Mexican title comes from Nahuatl, the Aztec language. That idea is not supported by the scholarly sources used here.

Guadalupe across traditions

• Spanish Catholic. About 700 years ago, a small hermitage was built in Guadalupe, Spain, where a shepherd had found an image of the Virgin Mary. The shrine became known as Our Lady of Guadalupe and drew pilgrims. A monastery followed. The monastery is now a UNESCO World Heritage site.
• Mexican and Latin American Catholic. Catholic tradition says Mary appeared to Juan Diego, an Indigenous convert, on Tepeyac Hill near Mexico City in December 1531. She is the patron saint of Mexico and the Americas. Her feast day is December 12. Huge crowds gather that day at the Basilica of Guadalupe in Mexico City.
• Mexican national identity. In 1810, Miguel Hidalgo made Our Lady of Guadalupe the patroness of his revolt against Spain. Her image was carried on the rebels' banners. She remains one of Mexico's national symbols.
• Philippines. In 1935, the Catholic Church approved her patronage over the Philippines.
• American Southwest. In the 1820s, a Mexican colony in Texas was set up on the lower Guadalupe River. Its town was named for both Our Lady of Guadalupe and Mexico's first president, Guadalupe Victoria. Today it is Victoria, Texas.

Who carried it

• Guadalupe Victoria (1786–1843): Mexican soldier and the first president of Mexico (1824–1829). He was born Manuel Félix Fernández. He took the name Guadalupe to show his devotion to Mexican independence, which had adopted the Virgin of Guadalupe as its symbol.

Forms in other languages

María Guadalupe, Lupe, Lupita

Guadalupe in letter-number systems

Hebrew, Greek and other traditions gave every letter a number, and read meaning into the totals. These are the counts, computed; the readings are inside the Innerverse.