Morgan is a name of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

and Breton origin. Traditionally, it is a masculine-coded name in

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

and

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

, but has been decoupled from its traditional gender outside of its regions of origin. Morgan is also used as a

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

, derived from the given name. The name is a descendant of

Old Welsh Old Welsh ( cy, Hen Gymraeg) is the stage of the Welsh language from about 800 AD until the early 12th century when it developed into Middle Welsh.Koch, p. 1757. The preceding period, from the time Welsh became distinct from Common Brittonic ...

''Morcant'', possibly derived from ''môr'' (meaning "sea") and "''cant''" (the circle) or "''gen''" (come / origin) with the meaning: "sea chief", "sea protector", "sea defender" or "sailor/captain". Contemporaneous records of the first Mormaer, or count de Mar, spelled his name

Morggán, Earl of Mar Morggán of Mar is the first Mormaer or Earl of Mar to appear in history as "more than a characterless name in a witness-list.".Oram, "The Earls and Earldom of Mar", p. 47 He is often known as ''Morgrund'' or ''Morgan''. His father was Gille ...

. The use of the name for women may be inspired by the character Morgan le Fay from Arthurian legend. For the etymology of Morgan le Fay, see . Morgan as a first name originated in Wales and Brittany, but spread in popularity outside of Welsh and Breton communities during the past century, including in France, and in English-speaking countries worldwide. In the United States it is commonly used for any gender, although it has become a more popular name for women than men since the 1990s, possibly due to conflation with the popular name

Megan Megan is a Welsh feminine given name, originally a diminutive form of Margaret. Margaret is from the Greek μαργαρίτης (''margarítēs''), Latin ''margarīta'', "pearl". Megan is one of the most popular Welsh-language names for women in ...

. The name is also used for any gender in other English-speaking countries, including Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The French feminine version of the name is Morgane.

Notable people

Female

Morgan Andrews Morgan Elizabeth Andrews (born March 25, 1995) is an American soccer player who last played as a midfielder for OL Reign in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She previously played for Perth Glory and Boston Breakers. Andrews has represe ...

(born 1995), American soccer player * Morgan Brittany (born 1951), American actress *

Morgan Fairchild Morgan Fairchild (born Patsy Ann McClenny; February 3, 1950) is an American actress. She began acting in the early 1970s and has had roles in several television series since. Fairchild began her career on the CBS daytime soap opera ''Search for T ...

(born 1950), American actress *

Morgan Featherstone Morgan Featherstone (born 20 October 1994) is a former fashion model based in Melbourne. Career Featherstone's modeling career began at six months of age when she appeared in a national Australian Dairy Farmers cheese commercial and she quick ...

(born 1994), Australian fashion model *

Morgan Gautrat Morgan Paige Gautrat (; born February 26, 1993) is an American soccer player who most recently played for the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), the highest division of women's professional soccer in the United Stat ...

(born 1993), American soccer player * Morgan Hurd (born 2001), American gymnast * Morgan James (born 1981), American musician *

Morgan Joanel Morgan Joanel, is an Australian pop singer-songwriter and visual artist, based in Perth. Musical career 2009–2012: Devil's in the Detail Morgan Joanel's career started by signing to Sony Music Australia, who discovered her through Myspac ...

, Australian pop singer-songwriter and visual artist * Morgan Pressel (born 1988), American professional golfer *

Morgan Tuck Morgan Tuck (born April 30, 1994) is an American former professional basketball player. She played her first four WNBA seasons with the Connecticut Sun. She won 4 consecutive NCAA championships with the University of Connecticut. She completed he ...

(born 1994), American basketball player * Morgan Webb (born 1978), American television presenter and producer * Morgan White (born 1983), American gymnast *

Morgan William Morgan William (born July 14, 1996) is an American women's college basketball player who previously played for the Mississippi State Bulldogs. She helped lead the Bulldogs to four appearances in the NCAA tournament, including three Sweet Sixteens ...

(born 1996), American basketball player

Male

Morgan (bishop) Morgan was a medieval Bishop-elect of Durham. Morgan was an illegitimate son of King Henry II of England and Nesta, daughter of Iorwerth ab Owain, Lord of Caerleon. Nesta was married to Sir Ralph Bloet, who raised Morgan as his son. The date ...

, Bishop-elect of Durham in 1215 and illegitimate son of King Henry II of England *

Morgan De Sanctis Morgan De Sanctis (; born 26 March 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He last played for Ligue 1 club Monaco, and currently works as sporting director for Salernitana. De Sanctis played for several It ...

(born 1977), Italian soccer player * Morgan Earp (1851–1882), American lawman, brother of Wyatt Earp * Morgan Ensberg (born 1975), American baseball player * Morgan M. Finley (1925–2016), American politician and businessman * Morgan Fisher (born 1950), British musician and photographer *

Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...

(born 1937), American actor, director, and narrator *

Morgan Green Morgan Green (born March 7, 1987) is an American former college and high school football player. He played as a running back for the Maryland Terrapins at the University of Maryland. He played interscholastic football for Henry E. Lackey High Sch ...

(born 1987), American footballer * Morgan Grim (born 1988), American basketball player * Morgan Hamm (born 1982), American gymnast *

Morgan Johansson Tomas Morgan Johansson (born 14 May 1970) is a Swedish politician of the Social Democrats who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden from 2019 to 2022. He served as Minister for Justice from 2014 to 2022 and as minister for home affairs from ...

(born 1970), Swedish politician * Morgan Jones (disambiguation), several people *

Morgan Luttrell Morgan Joe Luttrell (born November 7, 1975) is an American politician, businessman, and military veteran serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 8th congressional district since 2023. Early life and education Born in Houston in 1975, Mo ...

(born 1975), American politician * Morgan Nicholls (born 1971), English musician *

Morgan Philips Price Morgan Philips Price (29 January 1885 – 23 September 1973) was a British politician and a Labour Party Member of Parliament (MP). He was born in Gloucester. His father, William Edwin Price, was also a British MP, serving for the seat of Tewke ...

(1885–1973), British politician * Morgan Phillips (1902–1963), General Secretary of the British Labour Party *

Morgan Rielly Morgan Frederick Rielly (born March 9, 1994) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and alternate captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted by the Maple Leafs in the first round, fift ...

(born 1994), Canadian ice hockey player * Morgan Sanson (born 1994), French soccer player *

Morgan Schneiderlin Morgan Fernand Gérard Schneiderlin (; born 8 November 1989) is a French professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Western Sydney Wanderers in the A-League on loan from Nice. Schneiderlin began his career with Strasbourg ...

(born 1989), French soccer player * Morgan Spurlock (born 1970), American filmmaker, screenwriter and producer *

Morgan Stevens Morgan Stevens (October 16, 1951 – January 26, 2022) was an American actor, primarily seen on television. Biography Stevens played Paul Northridge in one episode of ''The Waltons'' and in three reunion movies. In ''A Wedding on Walton's Mou ...

(1951–2022), American actor *

Morgan Tsvangirai Morgan Richard Tsvangirai (; ; 10 March 1952 – 14 February 2018) was a Zimbabwean politician who was Prime Minister of Zimbabwe from 2009 to 2013. He was President of the Movement for Democratic Change, and later the Movement for Democratic ...

(1952–2018), prime minister of Zimbabwe * Morgan Ward (1901–1963), American mathematician * Morgan Wootten (1931–2020), American basketball coach

Fictional characters

Morgan le Fay Morgan le Fay (, meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan ''n''a, Morgain ''a/e Morg ''a''ne, Morgant ''e Morge ''i''n, and Morgue ''inamong other names and spellings ( cy, Morgên y Dylwythen Deg, kw, Morgen an Spyrys), is a ...

, a powerful enchantress in the Arthurian legend * Morgan Jones, a character in ''The Walking Dead'' franchise *Morgan the Midnight Fairy, a character in the book series ''

Rainbow Magic ''Rainbow Magic'' is a British children's fiction brand originally created by Working Partners and now owned by IoM Media Ventures. It is best known for the children's books published by Orchard Books. The books are ghostwritten by a number of a ...

References

{{given name English masculine given names English feminine given names Irish unisex given names Scottish masculine given names Welsh unisex given names English unisex given names English-language unisex given names

Notable people

Female

Male

Fictional characters

See also

References