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Does anyone know what the female Germanic name Hemma means? It was the name of a ninth century German queen. She's sometimes called Emma, so is Hemma related to Emma / Erma / Irma? In the Submitted Names section of this site Hemma's claimed to be a short form of Wilhelmina, but I'm not sure Wilhelmina was even used as a name in the middle ages.
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“Violence, in truth, recoils upon the violent, and the schemer falls into the pit he has dug for another." - Sherlock Holmes, The Speckled Band
BTN's Resident Historian
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“Violence, in truth, recoils upon the violent, and the schemer falls into the pit he has dug for another." - Sherlock Holmes, The Speckled Band
BTN's Resident Historian
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Replies
I did submit the name Hemma. Every book or reliable name site that I did check told me that it is short for female versions of Wilhelm - look: http://www.heiligenlexikon.de/BiographienH/Hemma_von_Gurk.htm
Saint Hemma became popular in some parts of East Europe where the "h" was dropped.
Saint Hemma became popular in some parts of East Europe where the "h" was dropped.
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You are right, the Duden seems to be the lone standout not mentioning Wilhelma, although also there Hemma von Gurk is the famous name bearer that is listed.
I think both could be true: A name so short as Hemma could well have several different derivations at the same time.
I think both could be true: A name so short as Hemma could well have several different derivations at the same time.
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Yes, I agree that Hemma could have several different derivations. It makes sense that it may have been used as a short form for names beginning with "Heim". A very reliable site about names used in Scandinavia and Germany is nordicnames.de They list several explanations:
http://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Hemma
http://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Hemmo
http://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Hemma
http://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Hemmo
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I checked the "Vornamen Duden": It says that Hemma can either be seen as a variant of Emma, or as a short name derived from names with 'heim' (English: home) as their first element.
The book cites somebody from the 10th/11th century as a famous name bearer and does not mention Wilhelmina.
The book cites somebody from the 10th/11th century as a famous name bearer and does not mention Wilhelmina.
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