Guy

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Guy

Gender: Masculine.
Language: English, French
Etymology:
Guy is a French name meaning “Wide” from Germanic “wit.”

History:
Guy comes from a Norman French name Gy, or Guido, coming from a medieval Latin and Germanic name Wido. A Norman name, it was introduced to England by followers of William the Conqueror in the early Middle Ages. It became the name of an English legendary hero, Guy of Warwick, and remained popular until Guy Fawkes attempted to blow up Parliament in 1605.

Guy was revived, though, in the 19th century after Sir Walter Scott’s 1815 novel Guy Mannering and Charlotte Yonge’s 1853 novel The Heir of Radclifffe featuring Sir Guy Morville.

Guy (probably because of Guy Fawkes) later came to mean “grotesque man” and later as a synonym for just “man” and later “person.”

Pronunciation: gy.

Alternates: Gy.
French: Gui, Guy, Guyon, Guyatt, Wy, Wyon, Wyatt.
Dutch: Veit, Gwijde.
Germanic (Old): Wido.
Italian: Guido.
Latin: Wido.
Polish: Wit.

Surnames:
Italian: Guidi.

See also: Wyatt.

Famous Bearers:
Artists and Authors:
Guido Delle Colonne (1215-1290)
Italian poet.
Guido Cavalcanti (1230-1300)
Italian poet.
Guido da Siena (13th century)
Italian painter.
Veit Stoss (Wit Stwosz) (1438-1533)
German wood sculptor.
Guido Reni (1575-1642)
Italian painter.
Guido Gezelle (1830-1899)
Flemish poet.
Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893)
French writer.
Guido Gozzano (1883-1916)
Italian poet.
Guy Bolton (1884-1979)
American playwright.
Guy Pene du Bois (1884-1958)
American painter.
Guy Butler (1918-)
South African poet.
Guy Martin Boyd (1923-)
Australian sculptor.
Guy Durosier (1931-1999)
Haitian musician.

Educators, Scholar, and Social Workers:
Guido of Arezzo (990-1050)
Italian music theorist.
Guido Adler (1855-1941)
Italian music scholar.
Guy Davenport (1927-)
American scholar and writer.
Guido Calabresi (1932-)
Italian-American legal scholar.

Fictional Characters:
Guy of Warwick
English legendary character.

Military:
Guy Gibson (1918-1944)
British airman.

Miscellaneous:
Guy Burgess (1910-1963)
British traitor. A Soviet agent.
Guy Laroche (1923-1989)
French fashion designer.

Political Figures:
Guy Fawkes (1570-1606)
Englishman who attempted to blow up Parliament.
Guido Bentivoglio (1579-1644)
Italian diplomat.
Guy Carleton, Baron Dorchester (1724-1808)
A governor of Quebec.
Guy Mollet (1905-1975)
A Premier of France

Religious Figures:
Guy Ballard (1878-1939)
A founder of the “I Am” religious movement.

Royalty:
Guy of Spoleto (Guido di Spoleto) (?-894)
Claimed to be Holy Roman Emperor.
Guy of Lusignan (1129-1194)
Crusader king of Jerusalem.
Guy of Dampierre (1225-1305)
Count of Flanders.

Scientists:
Guy de Chauliac (Guido de Cauliaco) (1300-1368)
Prominent French physician of the Middle Ages.
Guido Pontecorvo (1907-1993)
Italian geneticist.

Singers and Entertainers:
Guy Lombardo (1902-1977)
Canadian-American bandleader.
Guy Madison (Robert Ozell Moseley) (1922-1996)
American actor.
Guy Mitchell (1927-1999)
American singer.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.060 % named Guy
0.006 % named Wyatt

Popularity of Guy:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1850: 363rd most popular.
1875: 88th most popular.
1900-1910: 125th most popular.
1910-1920: 145th most popular.
1920-1930: 162nd most popular.
1930-1940: 187th most popular.
1940-1950: 208th most popular.
1950-1960: 166th most popular.
1960-1970: 195th most popular.
1970-1980: 326th most popular.
1980-1990: 474th most popular.
1990: 571st most popular.
1991: 558th most popular.
1992: 617th most popular.
1993: 643rd most popular.
1994: 730th most popular.
1995: 738th most popular.
1996: 763rd most popular.
1997: 776th most popular.
1998: 746th most popular.
1999: 813th most popular.
2000: 802nd most popular.
2001: 803rd most popular.
2002: 926th most popular.
2003: 934th most popular.

In France...
1900: 104th most popular.
1910: 66th most popular.
1920: 29th most popular.
1930: 19th most popular.
1940: 12th most popular.
1950: 14th most popular.
1960: 39th most popular.
1970: 91st most popular.
1976: 200th most popular.
1980-2000: N/A