Verity
 Truth by Alfred Schwarzschild. | |
| Gender | feminine rarely masculine |
|---|---|
| Origin | |
| Word/name | Old French |
| Meaning | truth |
| Region of origin | England |
| Other names | |
| Related names | Veretie, Verety, Verita, Veritie |
Verity (alias Veretie, Verety, Verita, Veritie, etc.) is a female first name and a surname. As a first name it derives from the Latin feminine noun veritas, meaning "truth". It is thus an equivalent of Alethea, a female first name first used in England circa 1585, derived from the ancient and modern Greek feminine noun αλήθεια (pronounced "al-ee-thia"), meaning "truth". It was adopted in England as a Puritan[1] and Quaker virtue name, truthfulness being considered as a desirable attribute especially in a female, and following a new Protestant tradition of naming children after virtues instead of saints in order to avoid idolatry.
Verity is also a surname, which may have more ancient unrelated origins, possibly being a corruption of a similar word.[2]
First name[edit]
- Verity Crawley (born 1994), English professional bowler
- Verity Barton (born 1985), Australian (Queensland) politician
- Verity Firth (born 1973), Australian politician
- Verity James, Australian TV and radio presenter
- Verity Lambert (1935–2007), English television producer
- Verity Laughton (born 1952), Australian playwright
- Verity Rushworth (born 1985), English actress
- Verity Sharp (born 1970), English broadcast radio personality
- Verity Snook-Larby (born 1970), English race walker
Fictional characters[edit]
- Verity Poldark Blamey, recurring character in the 2015 television series Poldark
- Verity Price, character in the InCryptid novel series
- Verity Simone Carlo, character in the IDW Publishing Transformers comic series
Surname[edit]
- Anthony Verity (born 1939), English educationalist and classical scholar
- Charlotte Verity (born 1954), British painter
- Elsie Eleanor Verity (1894–1971), "The First Lady of the motor trade"
- Hedley Verity (1905–1943), English cricketer
- Hugh Verity (1918-2001), British RAF and SOE pilot
- Jake Verity (born 1997), American football player
- John Verity (born 1949), English guitarist
- Ruggero Verity (1883–1959), Italian physician and entomologist
- William Verity Jr. (1917–2007), American businessman and government official
- Other
- Verity (sculpture), a bronze statue made by Damien Hirst
- Verity (ship), e.g. List of shipwrecks in 2023#October
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References[edit]
- ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 270. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
- ^ Surnames had been adopted by families in England centuries before the Puritan era