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Martha Wash is an American singer-songwriter, actress, and producer. Known for her distinctive and powerful voice, Wash first achieved fame as half of the Two Tons O' Fun, along with Izora Armstead, as they sang backing vocals for the disco singer Sylvester including on his signature hit "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)". After gaining their own record deal, they released three consecutive commercially successful songs which all peaked at number two in the dance charts. The duo was renamed The Weather Girls in 1982 after they released the top-selling single "It's Raining Men", which brought them to mainstream pop attention. The Weather Girls released five albums and were heavily featured on Sylvester's albums.
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I think Martha is a beautiful name, and it ages flawlessly.
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I love this so much, it sounds warm, kind and welcoming. It's severely underused and underrated, and needs to make a comeback.
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I absolutely love this name, because it sounds so warm, elegant, and graceful, reminding me of fire in the wind. I don’t get why lots of people hate this historical, classic name with essence. Without a doubt, I’d gladly name my daughter Martha.
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Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez, known professionally as Ivy Queen, is a Puerto Rican singer, rapper, songwriter, and actress. She is considered one of the pioneers of the reggaeton genre, commonly referred to as the Queen of Reggaeton.
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Martha is a really cute name and it just emanates a warm energy.
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10
Martha Speaks in an animated television series.
2
2
It's a moment that would have been made for Twitter fifty years later. An executive, who oversees airline personnel, is being eviscerated by a congresswoman. A flight attendant has been fired, because she has the audacity to be engaged to be married. The congresswoman bellows, “You point out that you are asking a bona fide occupational exception that a stewardess be young, attractive, and single. What are you running, an airline or a whorehouse?"
The congresswoman was Martha Wright Griffiths (D-MI), an accomplished lawyer and jurist. (Later reporting suggested that this had actually transpired in a letter. I prefer the drama of the live confrontation.)
In August 1970, Martha Wright Griffiths was described by TIME Magazine as "easily the most persistent feminist in Congress." At the time, the nine other women in the House of Representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, were quietly pushing her to become the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court. Wright Griffiths was dismissive, privately describing the justices of the Supreme Court as "idiots."
Wright, now Wright Griffiths career in politics stretched from the 1940s to the 1990s. Her feminist activism predated the women's liberation movement, and she became a rare proto-feminist generally accepted by the women's liberation movement. Yet she served long enough to see what Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Susan Faludi described as feminist backlash take root.
Martha Wright was born in Missouri in 1912. Her family highly valued education, and her mother took on extra jobs to help pay for her tuition. Wright’s grandmother had struggled to raise her children’s after her husband’s death; this familial background, and her mother’s fortitude in pursuing her education, led to a lifelong commitment to women’s rights.
Wright graduated from the University of Missouri at Columbia with a degree in political science. She had also met Hicks G. Griffiths. The two would marry and pursue law school together at the University of Michigan, where Wright, now Wright Griffiths, made law review. She would open her own law practice in 1946, and her husband would soon join. In 1947, G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams, a toiletries heir and college classmate, also joined.
In the 1940s, Hicks Griffiths became the Michigan Democratic Party chair. At his prodding and with his support, Wright Griffiths ran for the state legislature of Michigan in 1946. She lost, but was positioned to win two years later in 1948.
Wright Griffiths’ chances were improved in 1948 by G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams’ successful gubernatorial run. The pair were well aligned, and both won their elections that year.
She won re-election in 1950 to the state legislature. In 1952, she attempted a run at Congress, but was unsuccessful.
After losing her 1952 congressional run, Williams appointed Wright Griffiths to a judgeship in Detroit. She was the Judge of the Recorder’s Court.
In 1954, Wright Griffiths again sought election to Congress. She ran without the support of neither organized labor, namely the United Auto Workers (UAW), powerful in auto industry-heavy Detroit, nor the Michigan Democratic Party. She did have Gov. Williams in her corner. She also employed a rather unique campaign strategy: she drove around her district with an enormous campaign trailer admonishing voters to vote for her. The gambit worked. Wright Griffiths won the election by 4% points, and entered the House as a Michigan Representative in January 1955.
Wright Griffiths' first two terms were relatively quiet. In April 1959, disillusioned with the committee system that dominated Congress at the time, she shocked Detroit political observers by running for her former judgeship. She lost the judgeship, but retained her House seat; in the next election 1960, she would win reelection by 16 points.
In the 1960s, Wright Griffiths built enough seniority to gain significant committee seats. In 1962, she became the first woman to win appointment to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. As the 1960s progressed, she earned spots on the Joint Economic Committee and chaired a subcommittee on fiscal policy. She served on committees on crime and budget control.
Wright Griffiths also introduced a resolution to create the Select Committee on the House Beauty Shop. However absurd this sound, this was a real committee. The House Beauty Shop had been founded by a beautician named Mabel Solomon in 1932 and served the women of Capitol Hill - primarily wives at first, but in time a growing number of staffers and eventually Congresswomen. Controversy had arisen over the beauty shop, which was almost exclusively overseen by Solomon with limited oversight. Speaker of the House John W. McCormack demanded an investigation of the beauty shop, and tasked Wright Griffiths and two other congresswomen to oversee the investigation. New management and staff were hired. Griffiths oversaw the committee from its founding in 1967 until her departure from Congress in 1975. Rep. Yvonne Braithwaite Burke (D-CA) oversaw the committee until 1979, when it was folded into the House Administration committee. (The beauty shop still exists. Its operation was privatized under Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1995, and is now more widely open to the public.)
In 1964, Wright Griffiths became known for her commitment to the advancement of women's rights during debate over the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The story often told is that Rep. Howard Worth Smith (D-VA) was opposed to any kind of civil rights legislation and introduced a resolution to add "sex" to the protections in Title VII of the act as a means to derail the legislation. In fact, the history of this maneuver is muddier; Smith had worked alongside famed suffragette Alice Paul and had spoken about the need to make any civil rights legislation as widely effective as possible as early as the 1950s. Regardless, when Smith spoke on the floor, others laughed at the suggestion. Wright Griffiths immediately followed Smith and scolded her colleagues, declaring, "I presume that if there had been any necessity to point out that women were a second-class sex, the laughter would have proved it." Between Smith, who carried southern conservatives’ votes, and Wright Griffiths, who lobbied extensively, the amendment was passed. The Civil Rights Act passed and was signed that year. (Notably much of the southern conservative bloc who voted with Smith voted against the act as a whole.)
It was largely due to Martha Wright Griffiths that the Equal Rights Amendment made it to a vote in Congress. The amendment, initially introduced in 1923 and a part of both Republican and Democratic platforms since the 1940s, became a cultural touchstone in the 1970s. Wright Griffiths was initially skeptical of the idea of a constitutional amendment; watching the slow but steady progress in the area of civil rights as exemplified by lawyers like Thurgood Marshall, she thought it would be best for women to achieve equality through a series of court decisions. She became skeptical of the Court, however, because, as she saw it, the Court had a tendency to deny women personhood within the meaning of the Constitution. (The earlier reference to the Supreme Court as "idiots" came about from this frustration.) She introduced ERA legislation at least once every year from beginning in 1955, only for the legislation to die in the Judiciary Committee.
In 1970, using a rare parliamentary procedure, Wright Griffiths got the bill out of committee onto the floor for debate and voting. Wright Griffiths focused on gathering as many votes as she could. (Her House of Representatives biography uses the word "stalked" to describe her actions.) She got the bill to the floor and the House ended up passing it in a 352-15 vote. (One woman, Rep. Leonor K. Sullivan (D-MO), was one of those fifteen.) The Senate amended the bill to exempt women from the draft, and the amended bill passed the House in 1971 and the Senate in 1972.
The ERA was three states short of ratification before effectively dying in the early 1980s.
Wright Griffiths decided to step down from Congress in 1975, citing age and a desire to spend more time at home with family. She stayed in the political sphere, chairing the rules committee for the 1976 Democratic National Convention. She also worked on the 1977 National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas, where she drew ire for opposing agenda planks in favor of pursuing lesbian rights.
She returned to electoral politics in 1982, running to be Michigan's lieutenant governor on a joint ticket with Rep. James Blanchard (D-MI). The pair won the election, and reelection in 1986.
In 1990, Blanchard decided to drop Wright Griffiths from the ticket; he had decided she was too old. (Observers at the time did note some frailty on Wright Griffiths' part; she was 78 years old and required use of hearing aids.) Wright Griffiths was livid. In a press conference, she declared that she would step down from the ticket voluntarily, but took a parting swipe at Blanchard. "The biggest problem in politics is that you help some S.O.B. get what he wants and then he throws you out of the train," she retorted. She later stated that she hadn't actually called Blanchard a "SOB" but her feelings were clear. She also declared, "He has a right to do what he wants to do, and after the election we'll see what he should have done." (The reporter covering the drama for the New York Times was a young reporter named Isabel Wilkerson; Wilkerson is now the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Warmth of Other Sons" (2010) and "Caste" (2020).) Blanchard's handling of the issue angered voters; Blanchard lost his 1990 reelection campaign.
Martha Wright Griffiths was elected to the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1993.
Martha Wright Griffiths died at age 91 in 2003.
-4
The congresswoman was Martha Wright Griffiths (D-MI), an accomplished lawyer and jurist. (Later reporting suggested that this had actually transpired in a letter. I prefer the drama of the live confrontation.)
In August 1970, Martha Wright Griffiths was described by TIME Magazine as "easily the most persistent feminist in Congress." At the time, the nine other women in the House of Representatives, both Democrats and Republicans, were quietly pushing her to become the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court. Wright Griffiths was dismissive, privately describing the justices of the Supreme Court as "idiots."
Wright, now Wright Griffiths career in politics stretched from the 1940s to the 1990s. Her feminist activism predated the women's liberation movement, and she became a rare proto-feminist generally accepted by the women's liberation movement. Yet she served long enough to see what Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Susan Faludi described as feminist backlash take root.
Martha Wright was born in Missouri in 1912. Her family highly valued education, and her mother took on extra jobs to help pay for her tuition. Wright’s grandmother had struggled to raise her children’s after her husband’s death; this familial background, and her mother’s fortitude in pursuing her education, led to a lifelong commitment to women’s rights.
Wright graduated from the University of Missouri at Columbia with a degree in political science. She had also met Hicks G. Griffiths. The two would marry and pursue law school together at the University of Michigan, where Wright, now Wright Griffiths, made law review. She would open her own law practice in 1946, and her husband would soon join. In 1947, G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams, a toiletries heir and college classmate, also joined.
In the 1940s, Hicks Griffiths became the Michigan Democratic Party chair. At his prodding and with his support, Wright Griffiths ran for the state legislature of Michigan in 1946. She lost, but was positioned to win two years later in 1948.
Wright Griffiths’ chances were improved in 1948 by G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams’ successful gubernatorial run. The pair were well aligned, and both won their elections that year.
She won re-election in 1950 to the state legislature. In 1952, she attempted a run at Congress, but was unsuccessful.
After losing her 1952 congressional run, Williams appointed Wright Griffiths to a judgeship in Detroit. She was the Judge of the Recorder’s Court.
In 1954, Wright Griffiths again sought election to Congress. She ran without the support of neither organized labor, namely the United Auto Workers (UAW), powerful in auto industry-heavy Detroit, nor the Michigan Democratic Party. She did have Gov. Williams in her corner. She also employed a rather unique campaign strategy: she drove around her district with an enormous campaign trailer admonishing voters to vote for her. The gambit worked. Wright Griffiths won the election by 4% points, and entered the House as a Michigan Representative in January 1955.
Wright Griffiths' first two terms were relatively quiet. In April 1959, disillusioned with the committee system that dominated Congress at the time, she shocked Detroit political observers by running for her former judgeship. She lost the judgeship, but retained her House seat; in the next election 1960, she would win reelection by 16 points.
In the 1960s, Wright Griffiths built enough seniority to gain significant committee seats. In 1962, she became the first woman to win appointment to the powerful House Ways and Means Committee. As the 1960s progressed, she earned spots on the Joint Economic Committee and chaired a subcommittee on fiscal policy. She served on committees on crime and budget control.
Wright Griffiths also introduced a resolution to create the Select Committee on the House Beauty Shop. However absurd this sound, this was a real committee. The House Beauty Shop had been founded by a beautician named Mabel Solomon in 1932 and served the women of Capitol Hill - primarily wives at first, but in time a growing number of staffers and eventually Congresswomen. Controversy had arisen over the beauty shop, which was almost exclusively overseen by Solomon with limited oversight. Speaker of the House John W. McCormack demanded an investigation of the beauty shop, and tasked Wright Griffiths and two other congresswomen to oversee the investigation. New management and staff were hired. Griffiths oversaw the committee from its founding in 1967 until her departure from Congress in 1975. Rep. Yvonne Braithwaite Burke (D-CA) oversaw the committee until 1979, when it was folded into the House Administration committee. (The beauty shop still exists. Its operation was privatized under Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1995, and is now more widely open to the public.)
In 1964, Wright Griffiths became known for her commitment to the advancement of women's rights during debate over the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The story often told is that Rep. Howard Worth Smith (D-VA) was opposed to any kind of civil rights legislation and introduced a resolution to add "sex" to the protections in Title VII of the act as a means to derail the legislation. In fact, the history of this maneuver is muddier; Smith had worked alongside famed suffragette Alice Paul and had spoken about the need to make any civil rights legislation as widely effective as possible as early as the 1950s. Regardless, when Smith spoke on the floor, others laughed at the suggestion. Wright Griffiths immediately followed Smith and scolded her colleagues, declaring, "I presume that if there had been any necessity to point out that women were a second-class sex, the laughter would have proved it." Between Smith, who carried southern conservatives’ votes, and Wright Griffiths, who lobbied extensively, the amendment was passed. The Civil Rights Act passed and was signed that year. (Notably much of the southern conservative bloc who voted with Smith voted against the act as a whole.)
It was largely due to Martha Wright Griffiths that the Equal Rights Amendment made it to a vote in Congress. The amendment, initially introduced in 1923 and a part of both Republican and Democratic platforms since the 1940s, became a cultural touchstone in the 1970s. Wright Griffiths was initially skeptical of the idea of a constitutional amendment; watching the slow but steady progress in the area of civil rights as exemplified by lawyers like Thurgood Marshall, she thought it would be best for women to achieve equality through a series of court decisions. She became skeptical of the Court, however, because, as she saw it, the Court had a tendency to deny women personhood within the meaning of the Constitution. (The earlier reference to the Supreme Court as "idiots" came about from this frustration.) She introduced ERA legislation at least once every year from beginning in 1955, only for the legislation to die in the Judiciary Committee.
In 1970, using a rare parliamentary procedure, Wright Griffiths got the bill out of committee onto the floor for debate and voting. Wright Griffiths focused on gathering as many votes as she could. (Her House of Representatives biography uses the word "stalked" to describe her actions.) She got the bill to the floor and the House ended up passing it in a 352-15 vote. (One woman, Rep. Leonor K. Sullivan (D-MO), was one of those fifteen.) The Senate amended the bill to exempt women from the draft, and the amended bill passed the House in 1971 and the Senate in 1972.
The ERA was three states short of ratification before effectively dying in the early 1980s.
Wright Griffiths decided to step down from Congress in 1975, citing age and a desire to spend more time at home with family. She stayed in the political sphere, chairing the rules committee for the 1976 Democratic National Convention. She also worked on the 1977 National Women's Conference in Houston, Texas, where she drew ire for opposing agenda planks in favor of pursuing lesbian rights.
She returned to electoral politics in 1982, running to be Michigan's lieutenant governor on a joint ticket with Rep. James Blanchard (D-MI). The pair won the election, and reelection in 1986.
In 1990, Blanchard decided to drop Wright Griffiths from the ticket; he had decided she was too old. (Observers at the time did note some frailty on Wright Griffiths' part; she was 78 years old and required use of hearing aids.) Wright Griffiths was livid. In a press conference, she declared that she would step down from the ticket voluntarily, but took a parting swipe at Blanchard. "The biggest problem in politics is that you help some S.O.B. get what he wants and then he throws you out of the train," she retorted. She later stated that she hadn't actually called Blanchard a "SOB" but her feelings were clear. She also declared, "He has a right to do what he wants to do, and after the election we'll see what he should have done." (The reporter covering the drama for the New York Times was a young reporter named Isabel Wilkerson; Wilkerson is now the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Warmth of Other Sons" (2010) and "Caste" (2020).) Blanchard's handling of the issue angered voters; Blanchard lost his 1990 reelection campaign.
Martha Wright Griffiths was elected to the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1993.
Martha Wright Griffiths died at age 91 in 2003.
-4
Martha Hughes Cannon became the first woman to serve in a state senate - and defeated her own husband in the process.
Martha Hughes was born in Wales in 1857 to a family of Mormon converts. The family emigrated to the United States in 1860 and arrived in Utah in 1861.
Martha became a schoolteacher at 14, but soon realized that wasn’t her path. Instead, she began pursuing a medical career. In 1878, the LDS Church officially designated Martha and three other young women to study medicine. She earned her degree at 23 from the University of Michigan, and then furthered her training at the University of Pennsylvania. By age 25, she had earned four college degrees, frequently being the only woman in her classes. Afterwards she returned to Utah, setting up a practice and eventually becoming resident physician at LDS Hospital.
While working at LDS Hospital, Martha met Angus Munn Cannon, a local LDS Church leader. Martha became Angus Cannon’ fourth wife in a plural marriage in 1884, after the 1882 Edmunds Act passed by Congress made polygamy a felony. The marital situation, though secret and only religiously binding versus legally binding, proved challenging; Martha spent time in hiding and then self-exiled to Europe. Angus ended in jail for a time. Martha lived apart from her husband for a year; in that year, he married two additional wives, causing tension. Martha returned to Utah in late 1887.
Upon her return, Martha became a vigorous campaigner for women’s suffrage; in 1887, the Edmunds-Tucker Act disenfranchised Utah women, who had been voting in elections since 1870, causing Utah women to rally together. Martha defended polygamy simultaneously, believing plural marriages provided women greater freedom than monogamy.
In 1896, Martha decided to enter the election for an at-large seat in the newly-formed Utah state senate. Martha ran as a Democrat; Angus ran as a Republican. Martha was elected; Angus was not. The pair claimed this didn’t cause any tensions in their relationship. In doing so, Martha became the first woman to serve in a state senate in the United States.
During her time in the senate, Martha primarily focused on women’s rights and public health. She vigorously supported vaccinations, often butting heads with LDS leadership.
Martha decided not to run at the conclusion of her term in 1901.
Martha left Utah in 1915, settling in California. She died in Los Angeles in 1932.
In 2018, the Utah legislature voted to send a statue of Martha Hughes Cannon to represent Utah in Statuary Hall at the US Capitol. It was supposed to be formally installed in 2020, in commemoration of the hundredth anniversary of women’s suffrage, but the installation was delayed to the coronavirus pandemic.
-3
Martha Hughes was born in Wales in 1857 to a family of Mormon converts. The family emigrated to the United States in 1860 and arrived in Utah in 1861.
Martha became a schoolteacher at 14, but soon realized that wasn’t her path. Instead, she began pursuing a medical career. In 1878, the LDS Church officially designated Martha and three other young women to study medicine. She earned her degree at 23 from the University of Michigan, and then furthered her training at the University of Pennsylvania. By age 25, she had earned four college degrees, frequently being the only woman in her classes. Afterwards she returned to Utah, setting up a practice and eventually becoming resident physician at LDS Hospital.
While working at LDS Hospital, Martha met Angus Munn Cannon, a local LDS Church leader. Martha became Angus Cannon’ fourth wife in a plural marriage in 1884, after the 1882 Edmunds Act passed by Congress made polygamy a felony. The marital situation, though secret and only religiously binding versus legally binding, proved challenging; Martha spent time in hiding and then self-exiled to Europe. Angus ended in jail for a time. Martha lived apart from her husband for a year; in that year, he married two additional wives, causing tension. Martha returned to Utah in late 1887.
Upon her return, Martha became a vigorous campaigner for women’s suffrage; in 1887, the Edmunds-Tucker Act disenfranchised Utah women, who had been voting in elections since 1870, causing Utah women to rally together. Martha defended polygamy simultaneously, believing plural marriages provided women greater freedom than monogamy.
In 1896, Martha decided to enter the election for an at-large seat in the newly-formed Utah state senate. Martha ran as a Democrat; Angus ran as a Republican. Martha was elected; Angus was not. The pair claimed this didn’t cause any tensions in their relationship. In doing so, Martha became the first woman to serve in a state senate in the United States.
During her time in the senate, Martha primarily focused on women’s rights and public health. She vigorously supported vaccinations, often butting heads with LDS leadership.
Martha decided not to run at the conclusion of her term in 1901.
Martha left Utah in 1915, settling in California. She died in Los Angeles in 1932.
In 2018, the Utah legislature voted to send a statue of Martha Hughes Cannon to represent Utah in Statuary Hall at the US Capitol. It was supposed to be formally installed in 2020, in commemoration of the hundredth anniversary of women’s suffrage, but the installation was delayed to the coronavirus pandemic.
-3
Martha IS the best name in the whole entire universe, just so everyone knows. Martha is the name of geniuses.
Byeee :))
7
Byeee :))
7
Feminine form of Martin perhaps?
1
1
I agree Martha sounds too dated, but the name isn't that bad to me.
3
3
The different meanings of the name Martha are:
American meaning: Sorrow
Aramaic meaning: A royal lady; mistress; a name from the Bible
Hebrew meaning: Bitter disappointment
Arabic meaning: Lady
Read more: https://www.thenamemeaning.com/martha
-5
American meaning: Sorrow
Aramaic meaning: A royal lady; mistress; a name from the Bible
Hebrew meaning: Bitter disappointment
Arabic meaning: Lady
Read more: https://www.thenamemeaning.com/martha
-5
Martha Bessel is a character in the play and musical versions of Spring Awakening. She is one of Wendla’s friends and classmates, and is revealed to have issues at home with her cruel parents.
1
1
My name is Martha and I think it's awesome and unique! I was named after my grandmother and I am very proud to be a Martha. Not many women have this name and that makes me feel special. I believe it's a really badass name and elegant at the same time. To those who think that the name is unattractive, nerdy, or old fashioned well, it's your opinion but that doesn't mean being named with an "unattractive" name makes you instantly unattractive to those around you.
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It’s definitely not unattractive. I love the meaning. Martha is a soft, feminine, refined and quite powerful name.
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5
I do NOT like this, name. Bad name. Sounds to my ears like wet eggs slapping the concrete after being thrown out of a fourth story window. Anyone who has this name should expect me to chase them through a dimly lit New York subway after dark.
-9
-9
Martha is not unattractive! Sure, many of you think it is very old-fashioned, but that doesn't mean it is ugly! Same with Jane and Carol! They are all pretty names! This is also reminds me of the kind maid Martha in the novel The Secret Garden.
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6
Martha Swatek is a barer of this name. She was the actress for Marge in Jaws 2.
1
1
Homely name.
1
1
In the novel "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood, and in the TV series based on it, the "Marthas" are a class of women who cook and clean for upper class families. "Marthas" are basically housekeepers and servants.
2
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I prefer 'Marta' over 'Martha', because it sounds less old-fashioned. Marta seems more unique. (also the only thing I can picture when I think of Martha is Martha Speaks)
4
4
Even if this name is not so popular anymore, as it was really common many decades ago, it feels like it's still going strong, because Martha has class, such a great name with some meaning in it, unlike some trendy names these days. Good name!
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Old and lumpy. Very unattractive.
-4
-4
Martha Nielsen is a character from the German TV series "Dark". She is played by Lisa Vicari.
1
1
I know it's associated with an older generation of women in the U.S., but I always liked this name. I do prefer "Marta" over "Martha".
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3
One of the ulitmate old lady names. It also sounds very dull and just isn't pretty to me.
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-4
A Martha I know of is Martha Boswell, she was the eldest sister of the Boswell Sisters and the one who played the piano. The Boswell Sisters are my favourite singers! My favourite song is by the Boswell Sisters (The Object of My Affection) they sang numerous songs and appeared in movies such as Shout Sister, Shout, and Transatlantic Merry-Go-Round, they were most popular in the 1930's. Martha married George Lloyd and her sister, Connee, was her only attendant.
1
1
I used to love the show "Martha Speaks" when I was a little kid.
Anyway, I really love this name, Martha is super pretty.
5
Anyway, I really love this name, Martha is super pretty.
5
In 2018, 63 is the most common age for an American (U.S.) Martha who is registered female with the Social Security Administration. It is the 137th most common female first name for living U.S. citizens.
4
4
It was my given name, and I hated it and still hate it. I tried to like it, but it was no use. I changed it legally when I was in my 20's. My parents were angry, of course, but I was the one who would have carried that burden through life, not them.
I guess if I had gotten along with my mother it might have been different. I hated her, and I hated the way she pronounced my name: "Mar-THUH" like a mushy snowball thwacked right in my ear. My middle name was ugly, too, a family surname, not a first name.
All I can say is that if you're going to saddle a child with this name, at least give her a decent, socially acceptable middle name so she can use it if she hates her first name. I would have preferred Anne, Jane, Lee, or Mary to my given first name. And I don't care for nicknames.
-7
I guess if I had gotten along with my mother it might have been different. I hated her, and I hated the way she pronounced my name: "Mar-THUH" like a mushy snowball thwacked right in my ear. My middle name was ugly, too, a family surname, not a first name.
All I can say is that if you're going to saddle a child with this name, at least give her a decent, socially acceptable middle name so she can use it if she hates her first name. I would have preferred Anne, Jane, Lee, or Mary to my given first name. And I don't care for nicknames.
-7
Why so much hatred? I actually like this name. I bet anonymous users have terrible atrocious names and that’s why they love to hate on good names. Do you know how many old people have YOUR name?! MARTHA is NOT an old lady name so don’t hate on it, but it’s okay not to like a name.
3
3
Martha Dunnstock is one of the characters in the movie Heathers.
2
2
Martha Parke Custis was Martha Washington’s youngest child and George Washington’s stepdaughter. She suffered from epilepsy, and unfortunately died at age 17 after a particularly severe episode (although, having died as quickly as she did during an episode leads some to believe she may have also had a heart problem).
1
1
I like the name Martha. It sounds pretty and classic. In So Awkward there is a character called Martha. I love it.
1
1
On Gilmore Girls, Sookie and Jackson had two children, Davy and Martha.
2
2
To me this name has an image of a hard-working woman with a warm personality and good manners. I've known two Marthas and they were both like this.
4
4
The name Martha was given to 389 girls born in the US in 2016.
More than 99.9 percent of people with the first name Martha are female.
2
More than 99.9 percent of people with the first name Martha are female.
2
Martha Asahi is a Japanese professional comic artist and Cosplayer, graduate of Osaka University of Arts, mother of one. From 2013 to 2015, she had been leave for three years. One of the Global cross-dressing cosplayer duo VENaS Japan, and she is a rare cosplayer who doing a lot of works which got permission from Japanese copyright.
1
1
Princess Märtha Louise of Norway is the only daughter and elder child of King Harald V and Queen Sonja. She is fourth in the line of succession to the Norwegian throne, after her brother Haakon, and his two children.
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2
What an UGLY name! I despise the name Martha with a passion.
-5
-5
I feel like this name works for an old, sweet lady, or a young child.
3
3
I like this name a lot, in my top 10.
5
5
Pronunced "MAHR-thah" in Greek.
3
3
It is also used in Brazil (Brazilian Portugese).
0
0
I'm proud to be a Martha. Yes, it sounds old fashioned but it's a name that signifies dignity and strength. It's not a common name and never a popular name which makes it distinctive. In Aramaic, it means lady. It is the feminine version of Mar, which means lord. Besides, it was my beloved grandmother's name. No more need be said. Name trends come and go but this name is timeless. All you Marthas out there, bear your name with pride.
4
4
Martha, rambling rose of the wildwood. Martha with your fragrance divine, oh Martha how I wish you were mine. So, goes the old song that I was sung by my father many years ago. I can't say I really love the name nor can I say that I hate it. It has been mine all of my life and I have not taken the time or initiative to change it, so it must not be that bad. All of my life I have thought that it was an old lady's name, and now I guess that I am aging that I have become more and more the symbol of the name. I guess I just haven't found another name that I like better or would want to keep. So, I hang on to this old thing and hope that in the hereafter there is a far better one waiting for me. And yes, my kids are all instructed not to name any of my future grandchildren Martha - ever!
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Many people think of the name Martha as an "old lady name", and to some extent, I agree with them. However, Martha is an admittedly cute name. It is distinctive, and now quite uncommon. Old names such as Olivia, Emma, and Ava are now coming back in style, so why shouldn't Martha?
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'Martha' is a song by Tom Waits.
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My mother's name is Martha and it sets a high bar for anyone else who has the same name; Like Oprah or Beyonce, it is one of those names that stands by itself: The name reflects tradition and a strong, selfless, fearless, classy, thoughtful person that everyone looks up to. Someone who brings out the best in everyone.
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Not a bad name. It's just really dated and I see it more fitting on somebody who is 50 years of age or above.
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My name is Martha Jayne, and I'm 25, so Martha isn't completely an "old lady name". I'm named after my grandmother, Martha Ann, who goes by Marty, and *her* grandmother, Mary Jane... My mom added the 'y' to 'Jane' when I was born because she said I was too special to be a "plain Jane"...
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Mar or Mor in Aramaic means "sir", "master", or "Saint...". Mar Yeshu Mashikha means, in some forms of Aramaic, "Lord Jesus Christ". The "tha" in this name feminizes the title, giving Martha the meaning of "respected lady", or in later use "(female) Saint...". Mart Maryam, for example, is an Aramaic form of Saint Mary. [noted -ed]
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The name Martha is an amazing name! Martha sounds nice. It reminds me of the character with this name in the novel The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. :)
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When I was little I didn't like my name. I knew no one else with the name Martha and I was teased because my name was unusual or, as some have written here, sounded like an old woman's name. But I grew into it. It is a classic, elegant name (not that I'm necessarily elegant). It is old-fashioned, but old-fashioned names are all the rage these days.
Way to make people feel bad about their name by saying stuff like "it sounds like vomiting" and other horrible things! Please. Some people will find fault with everything.
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Way to make people feel bad about their name by saying stuff like "it sounds like vomiting" and other horrible things! Please. Some people will find fault with everything.
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I have a beautiful little sister named Martha, who I call "Miffy\". She's adorable, and this is such a classy name. I love it!
She also gets:
Ma
Martie
Mimi
Mattie
Marthie
Mally.
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She also gets:
Ma
Martie
Mimi
Mattie
Marthie
Mally.
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Martha is the name of the heroine, Cara's, mother in "The Unicorn Chronicles."
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Martha is the name of the annoying but amusing talking dog on the children's show "Martha Speaks".
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When I think of the name Martha, a strong, but feminine, person comes to mind; kind and pretty, with a good head on her shoulders. I think it's a good name that ages well.
I would not use it on one of my own children, but that's only because it hasn't reached my favorites. Martha is a name that will never grow old. A gem forever.
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I would not use it on one of my own children, but that's only because it hasn't reached my favorites. Martha is a name that will never grow old. A gem forever.
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The meaning listed here is questionable. I find for biblical names, concordances are often much more reliable for accurate meanings...
http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/hitchcocks-bible-names-dictionary/Martha
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http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/hitchcocks-bible-names-dictionary/Martha
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Mar-TUH
Or
Mar- THUH.
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Or
Mar- THUH.
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Martha Costello is the main character of the recent BBC series Silk. She's an awesome character.
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I think this name is awfully cute. And not to mention pretty, while other forms of it are too. However it's really outdated. Maybe as a middle name, but other than that I wouldn't use it.
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The impression I get from this name is that of a nosey neighbor, nosey woman. It's probably because of the tv character "Martha Huber" played by Christine Estabrook, from the tv sitcom "Desperate Housewives". Makes me think a "Martha" is someone who is a nosebag and gets into everyone's business, it's not her business but she likes to make it her business. On the contrary, a Martha is a rich and successful business woman such as "Martha Stewart", whom I love. Personally, I like this name, I'm pleased.
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The book "Indigo" by Alice Hoffman, as well as the book "The Secret Language" by Ursula Nordstrom, both have important characters in them named Martha. Also, the "Gemma Doyle" trilogy and "His Dark Materials" both have supporting characters named Martha in them.
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Martha Hatter is a character in Diana Wynne Jones's brilliant 1986 fantasy novel Howl's Moving Castle. She is the main character Sophie's half-sister.
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Someone mentioned George and Martha as a story about two hippos. Also, George and Martha Washington. But another George and Martha, (and what Martha brings to my mind) is Elizabeth Taylor as Martha and Richard Burton as George in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Great movie.
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It's a pretty, classic name, and not too common. It won't sound dated in thirty years time (Chanelle, anyone?), and it grows with the bearer. I think Martha May is a nice combination.
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It has a nice old fashioned ring to it, not in the bad way though. Also a very nice meaning.
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'Martha' is a beautiful opera by von Flotow -contains the beautiful Irish tune 'The last rose of summer' which has been incorporated into the score.
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A few people mention Martha Kent as a famous bearer. Another famous (although likely not by first name) bearer within the DC universe is the late mother of Bruce Wayne/Batman, Martha Wayne, wife of the also late Thomas Wayne.
Apparently Martha was a really mumsy name when those characters were created! lol
It's not my favourite name but it's okay and cute-ish, I think.
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Apparently Martha was a really mumsy name when those characters were created! lol
It's not my favourite name but it's okay and cute-ish, I think.
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Martha will be the Hannah of the next generation. Get in before the curve.
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I used to know a girl called Martha, and she was really witty and bubbly. =D Now, I think it would be a good name for a dog (I don't mean that in an offensive way) because Paul McCartney's Old English Sheepdog was called Martha.
It's a pretty name. ^_^
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It's a pretty name. ^_^
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Song by Country Joe and the Fish: Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine.
I prefer Marta.
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I prefer Marta.
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In the High School Musical movies a smart, hip-hoppin' girl is named Martha Cox, played by Kaycee Stroh.
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I love the name Martha, it is such a cute name that ages well. I can imagine a little Martha, an adult Martha and a grandmother Martha, unlike the immature-sounding name I was given (which I plan to change).
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I can't believe some said this name sounds like vomit. Also cannot believe how many people think of old ladies. I love this name. It is an old fashioned name. I am proud to be named Martha. One of my favorite nicknames would be Marty. I am 25 and have met 3 other people named Martha, 2 of which were around same age as me. And I also love how French people pronounce the name Mar-ta. It is all around a beautiful name. The name also has a Bibical meaning, which I love about the name. And then there is Martha's Vinyard, which was named after the explorer's daughter. So Martha is a great name. I love it.
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In Dutch and Limburgish, Martha is also used as a short form of Margaretha.
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Another famous bearer is Martha Graham (1894-1991), known as "The Mother of Modern Dance".
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I find this to be a very sweet name with a lot of dignity and class as well.
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I love this name, I think it sounds so pretty, it's feminine and classic, and not trendy! I love using the nicknames Mary or Marley for this name. Not a fan of Marty.
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One of my best friend's names is Martha and she's 15. So it's not as old as some people make it out to be =). I used to not like this name until I met her and know I find it really pretty. And no one misspells it!
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There's a series of children's books about two hippos named George and Martha.
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Martha Brewster was the name of one of the aunts in the play "Arsenic and Old Lace."
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This is the name of my great-great aunt. I like it and all, but it DOES sound a little old-fashioned. Like my aunt. AND, let's not forget my Aunt (times twelve or thirteen) Martha Washington. Yep, I'm related to her. :D
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This name reminds me of an overweight, black-haired woman.
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Martha Davis is the lead singer of the famous band from the 80's called the Motel's, whose hits are "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer".
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I really like the name Martha, along with the nicknames, like Martie.
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Yuck. I would hate to be named Martha. :[
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A famous bearer is actress Martha Issová. Daughter of Syrian director Moris Issa and Czech actress Lenka Termerová.
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Thomas Jefferson's wife and eldest daughter were both named Martha.
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One of the characters in The Secret Garden is named Martha.
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When I think of this name, an old-lady comes to mind.
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Royal namesakes: Martha of Sweden, Crown Princess of Norway (the wife of King Olav V and the mother of Harald V) and her granddaughter Princess Märtha-Louise of Norway.
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The new Companion on "Doctor Who" is named Martha Jones.
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My name is Martha and I'm only 24, so it's not an old lady's name. I like my name and think it's a pretty, feminine name, not to mention I like its meaning. There are several authors named Martha, among them Martha Graves and Martha Moore. There are several fictional Marthas, like Martha Kent from "Superman" and Martha Sowerby from "The Secret Garden," among others. Again, I like my name and I know for a fact that it's not for old ladies.
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Martha Mackenzie is one of the teens in the Australian soap, Home & Away.
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Full first name of Dixie Chick, Martie Maguire.
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Martha is a very nice name and sounds like somone who has a lot of dignity.
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There is an author named Martha C Lawrence.
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"Ma was the name of the Great Goddess of Comana; MA was the amulet representing Isis's fountains of nourishing fluid, MA was the primal deep, the world womb; MA was the death-rebirth syllable of the Persians, MA was the spirit of Intelligence, which in Hindu belief first bound together all the elements to make coherent forms." The Woman's Dictionary of Symbols and Sacred Objects, by Barbara G. Walker
"Artha: Sanskrit "riches" or "abundance", root of Indo-European names for Mother Earth."
The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, by same author.
I think it's pretty clear that this name means Mother Earth.
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"Artha: Sanskrit "riches" or "abundance", root of Indo-European names for Mother Earth."
The Woman's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, by same author.
I think it's pretty clear that this name means Mother Earth.
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I have also seen the nickname Marty used for the name Martha.
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Wow! I can't believe you left out Martha Stewart. Eeewww! Really, all lock up now!
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Feminine and beautiful. I always thought this was the feminine form of Martin.
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If I have a girl this is what I am naming my child. It is so beautiful and the Martha I know is is the most generous caring considerate person I have ever met and I only hope to be half as wonderful as her!
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A friend of mine once said that "Martha sounds like vomiting." I concur.
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A famous bearer is Martha Jane Canary aka Calamity Jane.
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Martha Kent (née Clark) is the name of the fictional character who is the adotptive mother of Kal-El of Krypton (who the Kents named Clark, who is known as Superman).
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Actress Martha Plimpton is a (young) famous bearer.
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Martha my dear is a song by The Beatles (I think Paul's sheepdog was named Martha).
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This comes from Aramaic "Maretha" meaning lady or mistress. It is the feminine of mar, mara meaning lord or master.
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I didn't use to like the name Martha, but then I read "The Secret Garden" and did. I guess it grew on me.
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One nicknames of the name Martha is Matti which is much better because Martha sounds like an old lady's name (no offense to the senior citizens who read this).
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I don't think it sounds like an old lady's name. I think it's actually pretty, and lady-like.
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Comments are left by users of this website. They are not checked for accuracy.
• https://nl.wiktionary.org/wiki/Martha (in Dutch)
• https://nl.forvo.com/search/Martha/nl/ (in Dutch)
• https://youtu.be/Dy424C8ETZw (in Dutch; the narrator is Dutch and the name is said at 0:08)
• https://youtu.be/_YHn1PZuH2E (in Dutch; the name is said at 0:04 and 0:31)
Converted to IPA, it should be: /'mɑr.ta:/
I should add that Marta (also in the main database) has the exact same pronunciation, as there is no difference in pronunciation between -th- and -t- in Dutch. [noted -ed]