Michelle
French (ultimately Hebrew, through Greek and Latin): Feminine of French Michel (Michael). Michael means "Who is like God?"
Pronounced mih-SHEL
Where the name comes from
- French (ultimately Hebrew, through Greek and Latin)Feminine of French Michel (Michael). Michael means "Who is like God?"Michelle / Michèle, from French Michel, from Late Latin Michael, from Hebrew Mîkhā'ēl (מִיכָאֵל)The meaning belongs to the Hebrew name Michael; Michelle inherits it through French Michel. In France the feminine was very rare and came into regular use only about 1920 (American Name Society). No listed scholarly source (etymonline, DMNES) has a Michelle entry; the French-feminine step is sourced to the American Name Society only.
Michelle across traditions
- Jewish (Hebrew Bible). Michael, the parent name, is in the Hebrew Bible. BDB glosses it "Who is like God?" and identifies one bearer as the "prince", or patron-angel, of Israel. Strong's adds nine Israelites of the name.
- Christian. The archangel Michael. Medieval girls named for Saint Michael were written "Michaela" in records but were called "Michael" in everyday life (American Name Society).
- Islamic. The angel Michael (Mīkāl) is named alongside Gabriel in Qur'an 2:98. This applies to the parent name only: Michelle itself is a modern French feminine with no traditional Islamic form.
- French. Michèle and Michelle are the French feminine forms of Michel, the French form of Michael. Michel was already in use in medieval Paris (Michiel 1296, Michel 1313).
- United States (SSA). 1,008,447 combined US births, 1950s–2010s: Michelle 805,659 and Michele 202,788. Peak decade: the 1970s, at #4 among girls (249,130; 305,690 including Michele). Michelle by decade: 1950s #93, 1960s #9, 1970s #4, 1980s #12, 1990s #32, 2000s #72, 2010s #185. The Beatles' song "Michelle" won the 1967 Grammy for Song of the Year; the American Name Society says the song accelerated a boom that was already under way.
Who carried it
- Michelle Obama (born Michelle LaVaughn Robinson) (Born January 17, 1964, Chicago, Illinois): First African American first lady of the United States, from 2009.
Forms in other languages
Michele, Michèle
Michelle 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.
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