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I have some questions about the name Samantha...I've heard that Samantha may be a combination of the Hebrew "sam" and the Greek "antha", but is it possible that the name is entirely Greek? Does "sam" have a Greek etymology?
Also, is Samantha ever used as a name outside of English-speaking countries? Thanks to anyone who replies! :)
Also, is Samantha ever used as a name outside of English-speaking countries? Thanks to anyone who replies! :)
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In the Netherlands Samantha is a common name. In Belgium the name is used as well. By searching on google I could find some German girls called Samantha. Samantha is there one of the 238 most given girlsnames. In France Samantha was on number 141 of the top 200 of girlsnames in 2003. I believe Samantha is also used in Spain and Italy, but I don't know that for sure.
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Not in Spain
In Spain Samantha or Samanta (the adapted to Spanish/Catalan/Basque/Galician/Occitan spelling) is not used.
There may be any Samantha/Samanta, but just as there may be any Montserrat... in USA.
(In Catalonia, there are 311 girls named Samanta [#627 in total of names] and 249 named Samantha [#745].)
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
In Spain Samantha or Samanta (the adapted to Spanish/Catalan/Basque/Galician/Occitan spelling) is not used.
There may be any Samantha/Samanta, but just as there may be any Montserrat... in USA.
(In Catalonia, there are 311 girls named Samanta [#627 in total of names] and 249 named Samantha [#745].)
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
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Lumia, I am confused by your answer. First you say that Samantha "is not used" in Spain, and then you say that there are 311 Samanthas and 249 Samantas in Catalonia. Isn't that a contradiction? Or are you claiming that though Samantha is sometimes used in Catalonia it's not used in the rest of Spain? I would personally find it very odd if this name was ONLY found in Catalonia within Spain.
The name has certainly been used in Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America. For example, there is any internationally famous squash player named Samantha Teran from Mexico, born in Mexico City:
http://www.squashsite.co.uk/vintage/teran.htm
The name has certainly been used in Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America. For example, there is any internationally famous squash player named Samantha Teran from Mexico, born in Mexico City:
http://www.squashsite.co.uk/vintage/teran.htm
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I said "it's not used in Spain", not "it's not used at all in Spain". This means that the name can appear sometimes in registers just as other foreigner names, not that it is never used.
Is possible to find a Samantha/Samanta in Spain? Yes. But this name nowadays is just a foreigner name as: Derie, Sharon, Hazel, Dunstan, Steven, Safae, Li, Eoin, Siobhan (all names of people who I know and who is born in Spain). "It's used in Spain" implies, for a foreigner name, more use that just a sporadic use, as with Vanessa/Vanesa, Jonathan, Jessica/Jesica, Jennifer/Jenifer, etc.
And uses and names in American Spanish-speaking countries are very very different from uses and names in Spain. My post said "in Spain", not "in Spanish".
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
Is possible to find a Samantha/Samanta in Spain? Yes. But this name nowadays is just a foreigner name as: Derie, Sharon, Hazel, Dunstan, Steven, Safae, Li, Eoin, Siobhan (all names of people who I know and who is born in Spain). "It's used in Spain" implies, for a foreigner name, more use that just a sporadic use, as with Vanessa/Vanesa, Jonathan, Jessica/Jesica, Jennifer/Jenifer, etc.
And uses and names in American Spanish-speaking countries are very very different from uses and names in Spain. My post said "in Spain", not "in Spanish".
Lumia
http://onomastica.mailcatala.com
This message was edited 9/2/2006, 1:52 PM
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Thank you for clearing that up, though to me the phrase "it's not used in Spain" and "it's not used at all in Spain" seem to mean the same thing. :)
What is your dividing line between "sporadic" use and regular use? Were the figures you quoted for all women alive in Catalonia, or for girls born in just a specific year?
What is your dividing line between "sporadic" use and regular use? Were the figures you quoted for all women alive in Catalonia, or for girls born in just a specific year?
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I don't know about Spain, but the name Samantha (or Samanta) is certainly used in Latin America, just like many other non-Spanish names. An example would be Uruguayan musician Samanta Navarro. However I don't think is the most popular of foreign names, its rate of ocurrence is far surpassed by that of other names of English and French origin.
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