Fun Facts About the Name Gwenevere
- More than 1 thousand babies named Gwenevere: U.S. records list 1,199 babies given the name Gwenevere from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Gwenevere Mean?
Gwenevere is an English spelling of the name of King Arthur's queen, more commonly written Guinevere. It comes from Welsh Gwenhwyfar, a two-part compound. The first part is gwen, "white," "fair," or "holy," from the Proto-Celtic root *windos. The second part, hwyfar, is not securely explained. One widely repeated reading connects it with Irish siabhair, "phantom" or "apparition," which yields the familiar gloss "white phantom." Another reading takes it from a word for "smooth" or "soft," giving "fair and soft." Since the second element is disputed, "white phantom" is better described as a customary interpretation than as a settled literal translation.
Gwenevere Name History & Origins
The earliest surviving records of the name are Welsh. Arthur's wife is called Gwenhwyfar in the tale Culhwch and Olwen, and the Welsh Triads list her among the great queens of Arthur's court. Caradoc of Llancarfan's twelfth-century life of Saint Gildas tells how she was abducted by Melwas, an early form of the kidnapping story that later attached to Lancelot.
Geoffrey of Monmouth's Latin Historia Regum Britanniae, written about 1136, gives the Latinized form Guanhumara (also spelled Guenhuuara), and the queen passed into French romance as Guenièvre. Chrétien de Troyes made her Lancelot's lover in the late twelfth century. Wace's Roman de Brut and Layamon's Brut carried the French form toward English, where it settled as Guinevere.
Gwenevere belongs to a family of later English spellings, alongside Guenevere, Gwenivere, and Gwenever. The Gwen- beginning keeps the Welsh first element visible, which forms closer to French smooth away. Nineteenth- and twentieth-century retellings of the Arthurian story used these spellings; William Morris, for instance, titled a poem "The Defence of Guenevere."
Briefly, related names include Gaynor, an English and Welsh form of the same source; Jennifer, which comes from a Cornish form of Gwenhwyfar; and Ginevra, the Italian form.
How Popular is the Name Gwenevere?
Gwenevere has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2019. Its best rank was #2,181 in 1962.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,601 | 42 | 0.0026% |
| 2024 | #3,593 | 43 | 0.0027% |
| 2023 | #3,792 | 40 | 0.0025% |
| 2022 | #3,788 | 40 | 0.0024% |
| 2021 | #4,354 | 32 | 0.0020% |
| 2020 | #3,460 | 44 | 0.0027% |
| 2019 | #2,969 | 55 | 0.0033% |
| 2018 | #3,306 | 48 | 0.0028% |
| 2017 | #3,108 | 52 | 0.0030% |
| 2016 | #3,345 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 2015 | #3,313 | 49 | 0.0027% |
| 2014 | #3,870 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 2013 | #4,033 | 37 | 0.0021% |
| 2012 | #4,244 | 35 | 0.0020% |
| 2011 | #3,865 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 2010 | #4,333 | 34 | 0.0019% |
| 2009 | #5,602 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 2008 | #5,190 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 2007 | #6,653 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 2006 | #6,680 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2005 | #9,684 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2004 | #8,418 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2003 | #6,404 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2002 | #7,556 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2001 | #10,391 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2000 | #11,088 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1999 | #15,238 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #14,545 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #12,362 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #9,486 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1976 | #9,801 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1975 | #9,561 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1971 | #7,707 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1970 | #4,856 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1969 | #6,926 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #5,844 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1967 | #3,919 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1966 | #5,022 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1965 | #4,036 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1964 | #4,452 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1963 | #2,727 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 1962 | #2,181 | 30 | 0.0015% |
| 1961 | #2,778 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 1960 | #2,675 | 21 | 0.0010% |
| 1959 | #2,421 | 23 | 0.0011% |
| 1958 | #2,793 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 1957 | #2,187 | 26 | 0.0013% |
| 1956 | #2,414 | 22 | 0.0011% |
| 1955 | #2,763 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1954 | #2,816 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1952 | #3,271 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1951 | #2,519 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1950 | #4,946 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1921 | #5,442 | 5 | 0.0004% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Gwenevere Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are introspective, prophetic, philosophical, and soul searching, but also can be analytical, critical and opinionated. You think deeply and clearly, have an air of mystery, can be solitary and secretive. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You are seeking freedom, opportunities to enjoy life: to make love, to go places and to do things. You are very adventurous and willing to take risk to achieve your objectives. New ways and new experiences can't satisfy your restless nature. One adventure leads you to another. You are honest and fair, because you know that this is the only way to receive justice and honesty from other people. But your personal growth is vital for you, and it is difficult to be tied down by rules and obligations. Your restless spirit might best controlled by choosing the field of work that meet your demand for action and adventure.
✦ Gwenevere's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Gwenevere's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.