Gerard
[dʒəˈrɑːrd]Meaning
from the Old German ger "spear" and hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy"
Background Story
Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, dithematic, built from gari > ger- ("spear") and -hard ("hard, strong, brave"). The Normans introduced it to England after the conquest of 1066, where its Old French forms were Gerard, Gerart and Girart, and it was at first much more common than the similar name Gerald, with which it was often confused. It is used in Danish, Finnish, French, Frisian, German, Hungarian, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Limburgish and Norwegian, with forms including Gerrard, Gerardo, Geraldo, Gherardo, Gérard, Gearóid, Gerhardt, Gellért, Gerardas and Gerards.
Variations
Gerardo, Gérard, Gerry
Related Names
Gerwin
Dutch masculine given name from Germanic ger (spear) and win (friend)
Areck
Arturo
Italian and Spanish form of Arthur.
Barnie
A variant of the name Bernard, meaning 'brave as a bear'.
Berndy
Bernie
Diminutive form of Bernard, meaning 'brave as a bear'.
Curtis
From an English surname meaning "courteous" in Old French
Derrek
A variation of Derek, meaning 'the people's ruler' or 'gifted leader'.
Emmett
From an English surname, a diminutive of the feminine given name Emma
Gallant
An English word meaning a brave or courteous man; recorded as a masculine given name