Mercy Otis Warren (1728-1814) was an American activist poet, playwright, and pamphleteer during the American Revolution. During the years before the Revolution, she had published poems and plays that attacked royal authority in Massachusetts and urged colonists to resist British infringements on colonial rights and liberties. She was married to James Warren, who was likewise heavily active in the independence movement.She was friends with many of the founding father's wives and was a correspondent and advisor for many political leaders, including Washington, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and especially John Adams, who became her literary mentor in the years leading to the Revolution.Warren was one of the most convincing Patriots in the Revolution and her works inspired others to become Patriots. Her work earned the congratulations of numerous prominent men of the age, including George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, who remarked, "In the career of dramatic composition at least, female genius in the United States has outstripped the male".
There is a song with lyrics that say "Mercy's not a pretty word. It gets down in the dirt for better or for worse. And sometimes it's gonna hurt to love without reserve, but Jesus did it first. And now it's our turn."This has changed my perspective of the word/name Mercy. It has a sweet sound to it, but Mercy is truly a weighty concept. As a recipient of Mercy, it is a sweet thing for sure. As the one who has to give Mercy, it can be painful.So I would wholeheartedly give this name to a daughter. It's sweet sounding, but weighty enough to mature well.
Mercy Akuot is a South Sudanese women's rights activist. She was married off as a child against her will to an elderly man. She escaped the forced union and now advocates for women’s rights and supervises a women and girls empowerment program in South Sudan.
It's adorable as a nickname, but as a first name it is also cute! It's strong, youthful, sweet and powerful! I love this, but I don't like Percy at ALL.
When I was young I felt it was a lame name until I researched about its broad meaning in terms of my dealings with people and how I perceive life... it had to deal with compassion and being empathetic towards people. Being humane. Lovely name I was given.
Interesting, and sounds pretty. A good spiritual name. Sounds French to me for some reason.
― Anonymous User 1/22/2020
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In the Doctor Who Christmas episode, The Next Doctor, Mercy Hartigan assisted the Cybermen in their attempt to conquer Victorian Britain and was transformed in to the CyberKing against her will.
A notable person from American history is Mercy Lewis, one of the Afflicted Girls during the Salem, Massachusetts Witchcraft Trials of 1692, who combined ended up causing the hanging of 19 people and the brutal death-by-torture of Giles Corey. Ironically, despite her name, she was not very merciful when it came to accusing people of witchcraft, having actively testified for 16 different cases.
I'm not normally a fan of virtue names, but I love this name for some reason. It just sounds so beautiful and lovely to me, it's also more meaningful than a lot of the popular virtue names.
― Anonymous User 6/14/2015
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This is my step daughters name who I absolutely adore, for as long as I've known her she's never been teased or made fun of because of her name. She's now 16 and everyone compliments her on her name.
I'm actually surprised to see that this name is older and not even in the top 1000 anymore, seeing as all these virtue names like faith, cadence, chastity, and temperance are so popular for some odd reason.
― Anonymous User 3/5/2013
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Actually, I love this name. I think it has a cool meaning and it's refreshing compared to Faith, Destiny and Honour.
(To the comment below saying that Mercy is a cold mame.) Do you even know what Mercy means?! This is nowhere near a cold name. Dated yes, but that's one of the reasons I love this name. Also, I'd name my daughter Mercy because God would've had Mercy on me and let me have a child. In other words, I love the name Mercy.
I like this name; along with Hope it's one of my favorite Puritan virtue names. It's slightly different from the more common Marcy and Mary, and has a lovely meaning. It also reminds me of the sweet and kind character from _The Witch of Blackbird Pond_, which someone previously mentioned.
It doesn't sound the least bit pretty, and it's the sort of thing people beg for, not something people name their kids. It is simply weird as a name, and it will lead to jokes for sure.
Mercy Lewis is a member of Abigail's gang in Arthur Miller's play "The Crucible."
― Anonymous User 12/19/2007
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I like this name because it sounds classic but original; this was one of my ideas for a middle name for a daughter, but my husband doesn't like it. Just a note: somebody said that Mercy Lewis is a character in "The Crucible," which is true, but it's more accurate to say that Mercy Lewis was a historical figure in the Salem Witch Trials. (You wouldn't say, "Octavian was a character in 'Antony and Cleopatra' by Shakespeare.")
In Martin Chuzzlewit the awful Mr Pecksniff has two daughters named Mercy and Charity. He is one of the most hypocritical characters in all literature! The girls, who are materialistic and out for themselves, are known as Merry and Cherry.
She was friends with many of the founding father's wives and was a correspondent and advisor for many political leaders, including Washington, Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and especially John Adams, who became her literary mentor in the years leading to the Revolution.
Warren was one of the most convincing Patriots in the Revolution and her works inspired others to become Patriots. Her work earned the congratulations of numerous prominent men of the age, including George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, who remarked, "In the career of dramatic composition at least, female genius in the United States has outstripped the male".