Maurice

Maurice m

1 English and French: from the Late Latin name Mauricius, a derivative of Maurus (see MAURO (SEE Mauro)), borne by, among others, an early Byzantine emperor (c.539–602). It was introduced to Britain by the Normans, and was popular in the Middle English period, but was not widely adopted by the nobility, and became rare in the 17th century. In Germany it became established as a traditional name among the dukes of Saxony in the 16th century. It is now sometimes believed in Britain and America to be a mainly French name, perhaps because of the enormous popular influence of the French singer and film actor Maurice Chevalier (1888–1972), who, in his public image at least, was the very epitome of Gallic charm. See also MORRIS (SEE Morris).

2 Irish: Anglicized form of the Gaelic name Muirgheos, which is composed of the elements muir sea + gus choice.

Cognates (of 1): Irish Gaelic: Muiris. Welsh: Meurig. Italian: Maurizio. Spanish, Portuguese: Mauricio. German and Jewish: Moritz. Scandinavian: Maurits. Russian: Mavriki.

Short form: English: Mo.