Etymology

From , from , and ; the Welsh equivalent of the Irish , derived from and .

Usage notes

The name was mostly used in Cornwall before the 20th century. It became popular in all English-speaking countries, first in UK in the 1950s, and then in US as the top name for women born in 1970-1984.

Related terms

• Gaynor
• Ginevra
• Guinevere
• pet forms: Jeni, Jen, Jennie, Jenny, Jenni, Jeny

Quotations

• 1906 George Bernard Shaw, The Doctor's Dilemma, Act I:

  RIDGEON. Thats a wonderful drawing. Why is it called Jennifer?

  MRS DUBEDAT. My name is Jennifer.

  RIDGEON. A strange name.

  MRS DUBEDAT. Not in Cornwall. I am Cornish. It's only what you call Guinevere.

• 1960 Jerrard Tickell, The Hunt for Richard Thorpe, Doubleday, page 10:

  "Most people's sisters have decent names like Jennifer or Jane or something. What did you say hers was?"

• 2000 Dana Stabenow, Nothing Gold Can Stay, Dutton, ISBN 0525945598, page 131:

  Jennifer. Jenny with the light brown hair. Jenny-fair, their high school French teacher had called her, and fair she had been.

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Proper noun

1. recently borrowed from English.

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Proper noun

1. recently borrowed from English.

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Proper noun

1. recently borrowed from English.