Tamara (given name) explained

Tamara
Gender:Feminine
Meaning:date (the fruit), date palm, palm tree
Origin:Arabic, Hebrew, Russian, Spanish, Hindi and Sanskrit
Related Names:Tammy, Tamy, Tami, Tammii, Tam, Tamar, Tamra, Tammara, Thamar, Themar, Tammie and Toma

Tamara is a feminine given name of Hebrew, Arabic, Spanish, Hindi, Sanskrit and Russian origins. It means date, date palm or palm tree and it is derived from biblical name Tamar (Hebrew: תמר tamar). In the Arabic from the singular form Tamra (Arabic: تَمْرَة tamrah) and the plural form Tamar (Arabic: تَمْر tamr). It was a common name in the 1970s in the English-speaking world. The variant, Tamar, is the second most popular name in Israel; it is also popular in Russia.

Etymology

Tamara means date, date palm or palm tree and it is derived from biblical name Tamar (Hebrew: תמר tamar) and in the Arabic from the singular form Tamra (Arabic: تَمْرَة tamrah) and the plural form Tamar (Arabic: تَمْر tamr). Tamara also has Spanish roots, meaning brushwood, and Sanskrit roots, meaning water.[1] In Russian it means beauty and grace and it is typically associated with the queen Tamar of Georgia.[2] [3] In Hindi (Hindi: तामर tāmara) the name Tamara means spice.[4] [5]

In the Bible, the name Tamar is associated with two female characters: one, the daughter-in-law of Judah, Tamar, and the other, the daughter of King David and full sister of Absalom, Tamar. The latter Tamar was raped by her half-brother Amnon, leading Absalom to later kill him. Absalom also named his daughter Tamar, who is described as a woman of great beauty, possibly contributing to the name's popularity.[6]

Variations of the name Tamara include Tamera, Tamra, and Tammara in English, while biblical equivalents are Tamar, Thamar, and Themar. Tamara can also be shortened to diminutives such as Tami, Tammi, Tammie, and Tammy in English, and Toma in Russian.[7] [8]

Popularity

The name Tamara began to be used in the English-speaking world in the 1930s and peaked in the 1970s. In the 1980s it was particularly popular among Black Americans.[9] In the United States, the name was fairly common from the late 1950s to mid 1990s, bolstered by the popularity of the film Tammy and the Bachelor and its theme song.[10] In the United States, the most girls named Tamara were born in 1970s and the number of Tamaras born per year was greater than 1,000 as late as 1996.[11] As of 2023, the name Tamara is fairly uncommon in the United States: in 2010, the name fell off the Top 1,000 Social Security Administration baby names list, with fewer than 250 baby girls named Tamara that year.[12] Tamar(a) was once the most popular name for girls in Israel, but in 2022 it dropped to second.[13] [14] Since the 1930s, Tamara has been in the top 320 most popular names in Australia, and was particularly popular from the 1970s to the 1990s.[15] [16] Tamara was a popular name in Spain during the 1980s, perhaps because of Isabel Preysler and Carlos Falcó's child named Tamara Falcó.[17] It is a popular name in Russia and occurs with frequency in Russian literature. It is also a common name in Central and Eastern European countries.

Notable people with the given name

Fictional characters with the given name

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Tamara - Baby Name Meaning, Origin and Popularity . 2024-04-29 . www.thebump.com . en.
  2. Book: Dictionary of first names . 1995 . London . Claremont Books . 978-1-85471-707-8.
  3. Web site: Significado do nome Tamara . 2024-04-29 . Crescer . pt-br.
  4. Book: Loughead, Flora Haines . Dictionary of given names with origins and meanings . 1966 . Glendale, Calif. . Arthur H. Clark .
  5. Book: Kolatch, Alfred J. . Dictionary of first names . Kolatch . Alfred J. . 1990 . New York, NY . Perigee Books . 978-0-399-51633-7.
  6. Book: Hanks, Patrick . A dictionary of first names . 2006 . Oxford ; New York . Oxford University Press . 978-0-19-861060-1.
  7. Web site: Campbell . Mike . Names Related to the name Tamara . 2024-04-29 . Behind the Name . en.
  8. Book: Webster's dictionary of first names . 1981 . New York City . Galahad Books . 978-0-88365-492-7.
  9. Book: Dunkling, Leslie . The Facts on file dictionary of first names . 1984 . New York, N.Y. . Facts on File Publications . 978-0-87196-274-4.
  10. Web site: Baby names that gained the most popularity the year you were born . 2024-04-29 . Stacker . en.
  11. Web site: Girl Name Tamara - Trends, Comments and Popularity of Tamara .
  12. Web site: Popular Baby Names . 2024-04-29 . www.ssa.gov . en.
  13. Web site: Zaltzman . Lior . 2023-09-19 . The 20 Most Popular Jewish Baby Names in Israel . 2024-04-29 . Kveller . en.
  14. Web site: Staff . Toi . 6 October 2016 . Israel’s top baby names are Muhammad, Tamar .
  15. Web site: Nicholas . Josh . Close call: most popular Australian baby names of the past century revealed . 2024-04-29 . the Guardian . en.
  16. Web site: Popularity for the name Tamara - Behind the Name . 2024-04-29 . www.behindthename.com.
  17. Web site: 2023-08-04 . Significado del nombre Tamara: origen e historia - Nombres de niña . 2024-04-29 . Ser Padres . es.

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