Hedwig is a German feminine given name, from

Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old High ...

''Hadwig, Hadewig, Haduwig''. It is a

Germanic name Germanic languages, Germanic given names are traditionally wikt:dithematic, dithematic; that is, they are formed from two elements, by joining a prefix and a suffix. For example, Ethelred II of England, King Æþelred's name was derived from ', f ...

consisting of the two elements ''hadu'' "battle, combat" and ''wig'' "fight, duel". The name is on record since the 9th century, with Haduwig, a daughter of

Louis the German Louis the German (c. 806/810 – 28 August 876), also known as Louis II of Germany and Louis II of East Francia, was the first king of East Francia, and ruled from 843 to 876 AD. Grandson of emperor Charlemagne and the third son of Louis the P ...

. The name remained popular in German high nobility during the 10th and 11th centuries. Other medieval spellings include ''Hathuwic, Hathewiga, Hadewich, Hadewic, Hathwiga, Hadwich, Hatwig, Hadwig, Hediwig, Hedewiga, Hedewich, Hedewiih, Hatuuih, Hetvic, Haduwich, Hadawich, Hatuwig'', etc. Forms such as ''Hadiwih, Hadewi'' etc. suggest that the name is the result of a conflation of two separate names, one with the second element ''wig'' "fight", the other with the second element '' wih'' "hallowed". A common German (and also Dutch) diminutive of Hedwig is ''Hedy''. The Dutch form of Hedwig is Hadewych (

Hadewijch Hadewijch, sometimes referred to as Hadewych or Hadewig (of Brabant or of Antwerp) was a 13th-century poet and mystic, probably living in the Duchy of Brabant. Most of her extant writings are in a Brabantian form of Middle Dutch. Her writings i ...

). The German name was adopted into Swedish (and to a lesser extent into Danish and Norwegian) in about the 15th century and is still in use in Swedish in the spelling Hedvig, with a diminutive Hedda.nordicnames.de
citing Kristoffer Kruken and Ola Stemshaug, ''Norsk Personnamnleksikon'' (1995); Eva Brylla, ''Förnamn i Sverige'' (2004). Finnish forms of name are Heta and Helvi. The German name was adopted into Polish, as

Jadwiga Jadwiga (; diminutives: ''Jadzia'' , ''Iga'') is a Polish feminine given name. It originated from the old German feminine given name ''Hedwig'' (variants of which include ''Hedwiga''), which is compounded from ''hadu'', "battle", and ''wig'', "fig ...

''.'' A French form is

Edwige Edwige is a feminine French given name. Notable people with the name include: * Edwige Avice, French politician * Edwige Belmore, French model, singer, and actress * Edwidge Danticat, Haitian-American novelist * Edwige Djedjemel, Ivorian baske ...

(not to be confused with the unrelated Anglo-Saxon Eadwig, Edwig).

Fictional characters

* Hedwig (Harry Potter), Harry Potter's faithful messenger and pet snowy owl in the ''Harry Potter'' novels by J. K. Rowling * Hedwig, a nine-year-old boy alter of Kevin Wendell Crumb in the film ''

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertai ...

'' * The protagonist of ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' (musical), an off-Broadway production ** Same protagonist in the musical's film adaptation ''Hedwig and the Angry Inch'' (film) * Hedvig Ekdal, the daughter in Henrik Ibsen’s play ''

The Wild Duck ''The Wild Duck'' (original Norwegian title: ''Vildanden'') is an 1884 play by the Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen. It is considered the first modern masterpiece in the genre of tragicomedy. ''The Wild Duck'' and ''Rosmersholm'' are "often ...

'' * Hedwig, the wife of Wilhelm Tell in Friedrich Schiller's 1804 play '' Wilhelm Tell''

People named Hedwig

Medieval

* Hedwiga (Hedwig of Babenberg; died c. 886), Duchess of Saxony, mother of Henry the Fowler *

Hedwige of Saxony Hedwige of Saxony (also ''Hedwig'', german: Hadwig von Sachsen; – after 958), a member of the Ottonian dynasty, was Duchess consort of the Franks by her marriage to the Robertian duke Hugh the Great. Upon her husband's death in 956, she act ...

(910–965), German noblewoman and mother of Hugh Capet, King of France * Hedwig of Nordgau (ca. 922–ca. 993), wife of

Siegfried of Luxembourg Sigfried (or Siegfried) ( – 28 October 998) was Count in the Ardennes, and is known in European historiography as founder and first ruler of the Castle of Luxembourg in 963 AD, and ancestor and predecessor of the future counts and dukes of Lu ...

, first Count of Luxembourg. * Hedwig of France (970–1013), also called Avoise, Hadevide or Haltude, Countess of Mons * Saint

Hedwig of Silesia Hedwig of Silesia ( pl, Święta Jadwiga Śląska), also Hedwig of Andechs (german: Heilige Hedwig von Andechs, la, Hedvigis; 1174 – 15 October 1243), a member of the Bavarian comital House of Andechs, was Duchess of Silesia from 1201 and o ...

(1174–1243), Duchess of Silesia, canonized 1267; see also Hedwig Codex * Hedwig of Habsburg (d. ca. 1285/86), daughter of Rudolph I of Germany and his first wife, Gertrude of Hohenburg * Hedwig of Holstein (1260–1324), Swedish queen consort, spouse of King Magnus III of Sweden * Saint

Hedwig of Poland Jadwiga (; 1373 or 137417 July 1399), also known as Hedwig ( hu, Hedvig), was the first woman to be crowned as monarch of the Kingdom of Poland. She reigned from 16 October 1384 until her death. She was the youngest daughter of Louis the Great, ...

(1373–1399), daughter of Louis I of Hungary and ruling queen of Poland

Renaissance and early modern periods

* Hedwig Jagiellon (1408-1431), Poland and Lithuanian princess, daughter of Jogaila, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and Anna of Celje * Hedwig, Abbess of Quedlinburg (1445–1511), Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg from 1458 until her death *

Hedwig Jagiellon, Duchess of Bavaria Hedwig Jagiellon (, , ; 21 September 1457 – 18 February 1502), baptized as ''"Hedwigis"'', was a Polish princess and member of the Jagiellonian dynasty, as well as Duchess of Bavaria by marriage. Born in Kraków, she was the eldest daughter o ...

(1457–1502), daughter of the King

Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (in full Casimir IV Andrew Jagiellon; pl, Kazimierz IV Andrzej Jagiellończyk ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447, until his death. He was one of the m ...

of Poland and Elisabeth Habsburg of Hungary, wife of

George, Duke of Bavaria George of Bavaria referred to as ''the Rich'' (15 August 1455 in Burghausen, Bavaria – 1 December 1503 in Ingolstadt), (German: ''Georg, Herzog von Bayern-Landshut'') was the last Duke of Bavaria-Landshut. He was a son of Louis IX the R ...

Hedwig Jagiellon, Electress of Brandenburg Hedwig Jagiellon ( pl, Jadwiga Jagiellonka, lt, Jadvyga Jogailaitė, german: Hedwig Jagiellonica; 15 March 1513 – 7 February 1573) was a granddaughter of Emperor Sigismund and of the Jagiellonian dynasty as daughter of Sigismund I the Old of P ...

(1513–1573), daughter of Sigismund I the Old and his first wife Countess

Barbara Zápolya Barbara Zápolya ( hu, Szapolyai Borbála, 1495–1515) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the first wife of King Sigismund I the Old from 1512 to 1515. Marriage to Barbara represented an alliance between Sigismund and the ...

, wife of

Joachim II Hector, Elector of Brandenburg Joachim II (german: Joachim II Hector or ''Hektor''; 13 January 1505 – 3 January 1571) was a Prince-elector of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (1535–1571), the sixth member of the House of Hohenzollern. Joachim II was the eldest son of Joa ...

* Princess Hedwig of Denmark (1581–1641) *

Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein-Gottorp (23 October 1636 – 24 November 1715) was Queen of Sweden from 1654 until 1660 as the wife of King Charles X Gustav. She served as regent during the minority of her son, King Charles XI, from 1660 until 1672, ...

(1636–1715), Queen of Sweden from 1654 until 1660 * Countess Palatine Hedwig Elisabeth of Neuburg (1673–1722) German-Polish princess *

Hedwig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp Hedwig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp ( sv, Hedvig Elisabet Charlotta; 22 March 1759 – 20 June 1818) was the queen consort of Charles XIII, Charles XIII of Sweden and II of Norway. She was also a famed diarist, memoirist and wit. ...

(1759–1818) Queen-consort of Sweden Norway

Modern era

Hedwig Dohm Marianne Adelaide Hedwig Dohm (née Schlesinger, later Schleh; 20 September 1831 – 1 June 1919) was a German feminist and author. Family She was born in the Prussian capital Berlin to assimilated Jewish parents, and her father was baptized. ...

(1831–1919), German feminist * Hedwig von Rittberg (1839–1896), Prussian-German decorated nurse, hospital supervisor *

Hedwig Bleibtreu Hedwig Bleibtreu (; 23 December 1868 – 24 January 1958) was an Austrian film actress. She appeared in more than thirty films from 1919 to 1952. Bleibtreu is perhaps best-known to international audiences as Alida Valli's furious landlady in ''Th ...

(1868–1958), Austrian actress *

Hedwig Dransfeld Hedwig Dransfeld (24 February 1871 – 13 March 1925) was a German Catholic feminist, writer and member of parliament. Biography Hedwig Dransfeld was born in Hacheney (now Dortmund), Germany, to the Romberg family (German aristocrats). Her ...

(1871–1925), German feminist * Hedwig Kohn (1887-1964), pioneering German physicist * Hedwig Porschütz (1900–1977), Righteous Among the Nations from Germany * Hedwig Bienenfeld (1907–1976), Austrian-American Olympic swimmer *

Hedy Lamarr Hedy Lamarr (; born Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler; November 9, 1914 January 19, 2000) was an Austrian-born American film actress and inventor. A film star during Hollywood's golden age, Lamarr has been described as one of the greatest movie actress ...

(1914–2000), Austrian and American actress born Hedwig Kiesler *

Hedwig von Trapp The Trapp Family (also known as the von Trapp Family) were a singing group formed from the family of former Austrian naval commander Georg von Trapp. The family achieved fame in their original singing career in their native Austria during the i ...

(1917-1972), Austrian singer, daughter of

Georg von Trapp Georg Ludwig Ritter von Trapp (4 April 1880 – 30 May 1947) was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy who later became the patriarch of the Trapp Family, Trapp Family Singers. Trapp was the most successful Austro-Hungarian submarine command ...

, fictionalised as Brigitta in ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, ''The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. S ...

'' * Hedwig Goebbels (1938–1945), one of the

Goebbels children The Goebbels children were the five daughters and one son born to Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels and his wife Magda Goebbels. The children, born between 1932 and 1940, were murdered by their parents in Berlin on 1 May 1945, the day bo ...

* Hedwig von Beverfoerde (b. 1963), German political activist

Fictional characters

People named Hedwig

Medieval

Renaissance and early modern periods

Modern era

References

See also