Wanda
Encyclopedia
Derivation
It is derived from Wandalus or Wandalarius (Vandalarius), the name of several Amali GothicGoths
The Goths were an East Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin whose two branches, the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, played an important role in the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe....
rulers. The first Polish historian Kadlubek wrote the Princess Wanda
Princess Wanda
Princess Wanda was the legendary daughter of Krakus, legendary founder of Kraków. Upon her father's death, she became queen of the Poles, but committed suicide to avoid an unwanted marriage....
story. He describes her as live amongst the Wandali (Vandals
Vandals
The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Vandals under king Genseric entered Africa in 429 and by 439 established a kingdom which included the Roman Africa province, besides the islands of Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia and the Balearics....
) and claims that a river (the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
) in the land of the Vandals is named Wandalus (Vandalus) after Wanda. The name later became used for the Wends
Wends
Wends is a historic name for West Slavs living near Germanic settlement areas. It does not refer to a homogeneous people, but to various peoples, tribes or groups depending on where and when it is used...
., who came to live in areas of the Vandals. The name then became popular in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
where the legend of Princess Wanda
Princess Wanda
Princess Wanda was the legendary daughter of Krakus, legendary founder of Kraków. Upon her father's death, she became queen of the Poles, but committed suicide to avoid an unwanted marriage....
with many new additions has been circulating since at least the 12th century;in 1947 Wanda was cited as the second most popular name from Polish secular history given to Polish girls. The name was largely introduced to the English-speaking world via the 1883 novel by Ouida
Ouida
Ouida was the pseudonym of the English novelist Maria Louise Ramé .-Biography:...
entitled Wanda which has an Eastern European setting. In the United States, Wanda attained its highest popularity in the year 1934 peaking then at #47 on the list of names most frequently given to female infants. The name is popularly interpreted as meaning "wanderer."
People
People with the given name Wanda include:- Wanda ColemanWanda ColemanWanda Coleman is an American poet. She is known as "the L.A. Blueswoman," and "the unofficial poet laureate of Los Angeles."-Biography:...
, American poet - Wanda GertzWanda GertzWanda Gertz codename: Lena, Kazik was a Polish major and soldier of the Armia Krajowa....
(1896–1958) - Wanda GuenetteWanda GuenetteWanda Guenette is a retired female volleyball player from Canada, who competed at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. There she ended up in tenth place with the Women's National Team. Later on Guenette started a career in beach volleyball.-References:*...
(born 1962), Canadian volleyball player - Wanda HendrixWanda HendrixWanda Hendrix was an American film and television actress.Born Dixie Wanda Hendrix in Jacksonville, Florida, Hendrix was performing in her local amateur theater when she was seen by a talent agent who signed her to a Hollywood contract...
(1928-1981), American film actess - Wanda Hutchinson (b.1951), American R&B singer (the EmotionsThe EmotionsThe Emotions are an American all female soul and R&B singing group. The group was formed in its current hometown of Chicago, Illinois originally consisting of the three Hutchinson sisters, all the children of Joseph and Lillian Hutchinson....
) - Wanda JacksonWanda JacksonWanda Lavonne Jackson is an American singer, songwriter, pianist and guitarist who had success in the mid-1950s and 60s as one of the first popular female rockabilly singers and a pioneering rock and roll artist...
(b.1937), American rockabilly singer - Wanda Jakubowska (1907–1998)
- Wanda KlaffWanda KlaffWanda Klaff was a Nazi camp overseer.Klaff was born in Danzig to German parents as Wanda Kalacinski. She finished school in 1938 and began working in a jam factory. This lasted until 1942 when she married Willy Gapes and became a housewife.In 1944 Klaff joined the camp staff at the Stutthof's...
(1922–1946) - Wanda LyzwinskaWanda LyzwinskaWanda Łyżwińska is a Polish politician. She was elected to Sejm on September 25, 2005 getting 7842 votes in 17 Radom district, candidating from Samoobrona Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej list.She was also a member of Sejm 2001-2005....
(ca. 1953) - Wanda LandowskaWanda LandowskaWanda Landowska was a Polish harpsichordist whose performances, teaching, recordings and writings played a large role in reviving the popularity of the harpsichord in the early 20th century...
(1877–1959) - Wanda MaleckaWanda MaleckaWanda Malecka was a Polish editor, translator, poet, novelist, printer, publisher and journalist. She was the first female in Poland to publish a newspaper....
(1800–1860) - Wanda Perry-JosephsWanda Perry-JosephsWanda Perry-Josephs is a gospel music singer-songwriter and minister from Boston, Massachusetts.Perry-Josephs was formerly a member of RCA Records' 1980s R&B singing group, 9.9 before leaving the group to pursue a solo career as well as her faith in Christianity.Since then, she has released four...
, an American gospel music singer - Wanda Piłsudska
- Wanda RijoWanda RijoWanda Rijo Contreras is a female weightlifter from the Dominican Republic. She twice competed at the Summer Olympics: 2000 and 2004. Rijo won the only gold medal for the Dominican Republic at the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Canada...
(b. 1979), Dominican Republic weightlifter - Wanda RutkiewiczWanda RutkiewiczWanda Rutkiewicz was a Polish mountain climber. She was the first woman to successfully summit K2.-Early life:Rutkiewicz was born in Plungė, Lithuania...
, a Polish mountain climber - Wanda SykesWanda SykesWanda Sykes is an American writer, stand-up comedian, actress, and voice artist. She earned the 1999 Emmy Award for her writing on The Chris Rock Show. In 2004 Entertainment Weekly named Sykes as one of the 25 funniest people in America...
, an American comedian - Wanda TinaskyWanda TinaskyWanda Tinasky, ostensibly a bag lady living under a bridge in the Mendocino County area of Northern California, was the pseudonymous author of a series of playful, comic and erudite letters sent to the Mendocino Commentary and Anderson Valley Advertiser between 1983 and 1988. These letters were...
(pseudonym) - Wanda Toscanini HorowitzWanda ToscaniniWanda Giorgina Toscanini Horowitz was the daughter of the conductor Arturo Toscanini and the wife of pianist Vladimir Horowitz....
(1907–1998) - Wanda VenthamWanda VenthamWanda Ventham is an English actress, mainly on television. She trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama....
, (b.1935), English actress - Wanda WasilewskaWanda WasilewskaWanda Wasilewska was a Polish and Soviet novelist and communist political activist who played an important role in the creation of a Polish division of the Soviet Red Army during World War II and the formation of the Polish People's Republic....
(1905–1964) - Wanda Wiłkomirska (b. 1929)
- Wanda YoungWanda YoungWanda Young is an American singer, famous for being the member and later lead singer of the popular Motown all-female singing group The Marvelettes.-Biography:Wanda was born in 1943 and raised in the western Detroit suburb of Inkster, Michigan...
(b.1943), American R&B singer (the Marvelettes)
Fictional characters
Fictional characters with the given name Wanda include:- Wanda von Dunajew, the female lead character in Sacher MasochLeopold von Sacher-MasochLeopold Ritter von Sacher-Masoch was an Austrian writer and journalist, who gained renown for his romantic stories of Galician life. The term masochism is derived from his name....
's novel Venus in FursVenus in FursVenus in Furs is a novella by Austrian author Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, the best known of his works. The novel was part of an epic series that Sacher-Masoch envisioned called Legacy of Cain. Venus in Furs was part of Love, the first volume of the series...
. - Wanda, the human name given to the protagonist in The Host (novel)The Host (novel)The Host is a science fiction/romance novel by Stephenie Meyer. The novel introduces an alien race, called Souls, which takes over the Earth and its inhabitants. The book describes one Soul's predicament when the mind of its human host refuses to cooperate with her takeover. The Host was released...
- Wanda Gershwitz and Wanda, the goldfish, from the 1988 British comedy film A Fish Called WandaA Fish Called WandaA Fish Called Wanda is a 1988 crime-comedy film written by John Cleese and Charles Crichton. It was directed by Crichton and an uncredited Cleese, and stars Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline and Michael Palin. The film is about a jewel heist and its aftermath...
- Wanda, a key character from the Todd McFarlene's SpawnSpawn (comics)Spawn is a fictional comic book superhero who appears in a monthly comic book of the same name published by Image Comics. Created by writer/artist Todd McFarlane, Spawn first appeared in Spawn #1...
series - Wanda, the character Wilhelmina SlaterWilhelmina SlaterWilhelmina Vivian Slater is a fictional character in the American dramedy series Ugly Betty. She is played by Vanessa Williams, who received a supporting actress award at the 2007 and 2008 NAACP Image Awards, a Best TV Villain award at the 2007 Teen Choice Awards and a supporting actress...
's actual name - Wanda, the main character in the video game Shadow Of The ColossusShadow of the ColossusShadow of the Colossus, released in Japan as , is an action-adventure game published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2. The game was released in North America and Japan in October 2005 and PAL territories in February 2006...
- Wanda, a cartoon character from The Fairly OddParentsThe Fairly OddParentsThe Fairly OddParents is an American-Canadian animated television series created by Butch Hartman about the adventures of Timmy Turner, who is granted fairy godparents named Cosmo and Wanda. The series started out as cartoon segments that ran from September 4, 1998 to March 23, 2001 on Oh Yeah!...
- Wanda is also a popular name in BDSMBDSMBDSM is an erotic preference and a form of sexual expression involving the consensual use of restraint, intense sensory stimulation, and fantasy power role-play. The compound acronym BDSM is derived from the terms bondage and discipline , dominance and submission , and sadism and masochism...
circles. - Wanda, the main controllable character in Mario & Wario
- Wanda Dollard, a character on the Canadian TV show Corner GasCorner GasCorner Gas is a Canadian television sitcom created by Brent Butt. The series ran for six seasons from 2004 to 2009. Re-runs still air on CTV and The Comedy Network in Canada; it formerly aired on WGN America in the United States....
- Wanda Firebaugh, a character from the webcomic Erfworld
- Wanda Li, a character in The Magic School BusThe Magic School BusThe Magic School Bus is a series of children's books about science written by author Joanna Cole. They feature the antics of Ms. Valerie Frizzle, an elementary school teacher, and her class, who board a magical school bus which takes them on field trips to impossible locations such as the solar...
educational series - Wanda Maximoff, identity of the X-Men character Scarlet Witch
- Wanda MacPherson, a character from the Comic strip and Television seriesBaby Blues (US TV series)Baby Blues is an animated television series based on the Baby Blues comic strip. The first eight episodes of Baby Blues originally aired in the United States on The WB from July 28, 2000 until August 24, 2000, before the series cancellation. Five then-unaired were later aired on Adult Swim in 2002...
Baby Blues - Princess WandaPrincess WandaPrincess Wanda was the legendary daughter of Krakus, legendary founder of Kraków. Upon her father's death, she became queen of the Poles, but committed suicide to avoid an unwanted marriage....
, a legendary princess in Polish legends - Wanda SeldonWanda SeldonWanda Seldon is a fictional character in Isaac Asimov's science fiction Foundation series. The daughter of Raych Seldon and Manella Dubanqua, Wanda played a key role in creating the two Foundations....
, in Isaac Asimov's Foundation series - Wanda Von Kreesus, the main character in the adult comic strip Wicked WandaWicked WandaOh, Wicked Wanda! was a British full-color, satirical adult comic strip, written by Frederic Mullally, and drawn by Ron Embleton. The strip regularly appeared in Penthouse magazine from 1973 to 1980...
- Wayne and Wanda, a singing duo on The Muppet ShowThe Muppet ShowThe Muppet Show is a British television programme produced by American puppeteer Jim Henson and featuring Muppets. After two pilot episodes were produced in 1974 and 1975, the show premiered on 5 September 1976 and five series were produced until 15 March 1981, lasting 120 episodes...
- Wanda, a popular recurring character on "In Living ColorIn Living ColorIn Living Color is an American sketch comedy television series, which originally ran on the Fox Network from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. Brothers Keenen and Damon Wayans created, wrote, and starred in the program. The show was produced by Ivory Way Productions in association with 20th Century...
" played by actor Jamie FoxxJamie FoxxEric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
Variant forms of Wanda
Wanda is a common name in PolishPolish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
languages. Notable variant forms of the given name Wanda include:
- Lawanda – EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
- KeWanda- EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
- Vanda – CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
, SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Magyar, Latin, ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics... - Vonda – EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...