Louise and Luise are, respectively, French and German feminine forms of Louis. Louise has been regularly used as a female name in English speaking countries since the middle of the 19th century. It has ranked among the top 100 names given to girls in France, England, Ireland, Scotland, Sweden and Wales in recent years. It last ranked among the top 1,000 first names for girls born in the United States in 1991, but remains a more common middle name.

Feminine variants

*Aloisia: German, Italian, Spanish *Aloisie: Czech *Alojza:

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

*Alojzia: Hungarian, Slovak *Alojzija: Slovene *Heloísa: Portuguese *Labhaoise: Irish *Liudvika: Lithuanian *Lluïsa:

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid ...

*Loes: Dutch *Lou: English, French *Louella: English *Louisa: English *Louise: Danish, Dutch, English, French, Norwegian, Swedish *Louiza:

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

(Λουίζα), Kabyle *Louize: Dutch, French, German, English *Lova: Swedish *Liisa: Finnish, Estonian *Loviisa: Finnish *Loviise: Estonian *Lovisa: Swedish *Lovise: Danish, Norwegian *Lu: English *Luann: English *Luana: English, Portuguese *Luanne: English *Ludovica: Italian,

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

*Ludwika: Polish *Luella: English *Luigia: Italian *Luigina: talian *Luísa: Portuguese *Luisa: Italian, Spanish, Estonian *Luise: German, Estonian *Luisella: Italian *Luiza: Polish, Portuguese,

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...

, Russian (Луиза), Albanian *Luīze: Latvian *Lujza: Hungarian, Slovak *Lula: English *Lulu: English, German *Luyiza:

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

(Луїза) *Ruiha: Māori

People with the name

Arts

* Louise Blanchard Bethune (1856–1913), architect *

Louise Bourgeois Louise Joséphine Bourgeois (; 25 December 191131 May 2010) was a French-American artist. Although she is best known for her large-scale sculpture and installation art, Bourgeois was also a prolific painter and printmaker. She explored a varie ...

(1911–2010), French sculptor *

Louise Cotnoir Louise Cotnoir (born December 6, 1948) is a Canadian writer living in Quebec. Biography She was born in Sorel and received a bachelor's degree in literary studies from the Université du Québec à Montréal and a master's degree in medieval stu ...

(born 1948), Canadian writer *

Louise Murray Louise Murray, née Welles (2 January 1854 – 22 April 1931), was an American local historian and museum director. Life and work Louise Shipman Murray was born in Athens, Pennsylvania on 2 January 1854. She graduated from Wells College Wells ...

(1854–1931), American local historian and museum director *

Louise Nevelson Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 – April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Born in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Kyiv Oblast, ...

(1899–1988), American sculptor * Louise Robert (born 1941), Canadian painter *

Louise Schatz Louise Schatz (née Louise Burton McClure; 1916–1997) was a Canadian-born Israeli painter, ceramist, and textile designer. She is one of the best known abstract watercolorist from Israel. She was active in Berkeley, Big Sur, Haifa, and Jerusale ...

(1916–1997), Canadian-born Israeli artist and designer

Entertainment

Louise Abuel Louise Darnell Alba Abuel (born December 27, 2003) is a Filipino teen actor and commercial model. He first appeared as Kevin Delgado in the television series ''100 Days to Heaven'', Young Jao in Princess and I, Pikoy in ''Juan dela Cruz'', and ...

(born 2003), Filipino teen actor *

Louise Beavers Louise Beavers (March 8, 1902 – October 26, 1962) was an American film and television actress. From the 1920s until 1960, she appeared in dozens of films and two hit television shows. She was most often cast in the roles of a maid, servan ...

(1902–1962), African-American film and television actress * Louise Bourgoin (born 1981), French actress * Louise Brealey (born 1979), English actress *

Louise Brooks Mary Louise Brooks (November 14, 1906 – August 8, 1985) was an American film actress and dancer during the 1920s and 1930s. She is regarded today as an icon of the Jazz Age and flapper culture, in part due to the bob hairstyle that she helpe ...

(1906–1985), American silent film actress *

Louise Fletcher Estelle Louise Fletcher (July 22, 1934 – September 23, 2022) was an American actress who portrayed the antagonist Nurse Ratched in ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1975), which earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA Award, a ...

(1934–2022), American actress *

Louise Gold Louise Gold (born 1956) is an English puppeteer, actress and singer whose career has spanned more than four decades. She is best known for her work as a puppeteer on television and for roles in musical theatre in the West End. Gold was raised ...

(born 1956), British Muppet performer *

Luise Gruber Luise Gruber (born 27 June 1982 in Wels, Austria), better known by her stage name Saint Lu is an Austrian singer and songwriter. She currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany. Recording career Luise Gruber was a member of many short-living ...

(born 1982), Austrian blues singer-songwriter, professionally known as Saint Lu *Louise Harman, real name of

Lady Sovereign Louise Amanda Harman (born 19 December 1985), better known by the stage name Lady Sovereign, is a British rapper, best known for the songs " 9 to 5" and "Love Me or Hate Me". Early life and family Lady Sovereign grew up in Chalkhill Estate i ...

(born 1985), British rapper * Louise Harrison, British actress *

Louise Jameson Louise Jameson (born 20 April 1951) is an English actress with a wide variety of television and theatre credits. Her roles on television have included playing Leela (Doctor Who), Leela in ''Doctor Who'' (1977–1978), Anne Reynolds in ''The Ome ...

(born 1951), British actress * Louise Lasser (born 1939), American actress * Louise Michaëli (1830–1875), opera singer * Louise Plowright (1956–2016), British actress *

Luise Rainer Luise Rainer ( , ; 12 January 1910 – 30 December 2014) was a German-American-British film actress. She was the first thespian to win multiple Academy Awards and the first to win back-to-back; at the time of her death, thirteen days shy of her ...

(1910–2014), German-Austrian-American actress * Louise delos Reyes (born 1992), Filipino actress *

Louise Redknapp Louise Elizabeth Redknapp (née Nurding, born 4 November 1974) is an English singer, songwriter and media personality. She was a member of Eternal, an R&B girl group which debuted in 1993 with their quadruple-platinum studio album '' Always & ...

(born 1974), British singer professionally known simply as "Louise" *

Mary-Louise Parker Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles ...

(born 1964), American actress *

Louise Labèque Louise Labèque is a French actress. She made her breakthrough in Bertrand Bonello's fantasy film ''Zombi Child'' (2019). Biography Labèque studied at the French drama school Cours Florent for three years. One day some agents came by during th ...

, French actress

Literature

* Louise Adler (born 1954), Australian publisher and academic *

Luise Aston Luise Aston, or ''Louise Aston'' (26 November 181421 December 1871), was a German author and feminist, who championed the rights of women, and was known for dressing in male attire. She was an advocate of democracy, free love, and sexuality. B ...

, German author *

Louise Bogan Louise Bogan (August 11, 1897 – February 4, 1970) was an American poet. She was appointed the fourth Poet Laureate to the Library of Congress in 1945, and was the first woman to hold this title. Throughout her life she wrote poetry, fiction, ...

, American poet * Louise Compain, French feminist author *

Louise Cooper Louise Cooper (29 May 1952 – 21 October 2009) was a British fantasy writer who lived in Cornwall with her husband, Cas Sandall. Cooper was born in Barnet, Hertfordshire. She began writing stories when she was at school to entertain her ...

, British writer *

Louise Erdrich Louise Erdrich ( ; born Karen Louise Erdrich, June 7, 1954) is an American author of novels, poetry, and children's books featuring Native American characters and settings. She is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indian ...

, American novelist and poet * Louise Flodin, Swedish journalist and publisher *

Luise Gottsched Luise Adelgunde Victorie Gottsched (born Kulmus, 11 April 1713 – 26 June 1762) was a German poet, playwright, essayist, and translator, and is often considered one of the founders of modern German theatrical comedy. Biography She was born in ...

, German poet, playwright, essayist, and translator *

Louise Granberg Louise Elisabeth Granberg (29 October 1812 – 28 December 1907), was a Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken ...

(1812–1907), Swedish playwright *

Louise Hay Louise Lynn Hay (October 8, 1926 – August 30, 2017) was an American motivational author and the founder of Hay House. She authored several New Thought self-help books, including the 1984 book '' You Can Heal Your Life''. Early life and c ...

, American motivational author and publisher *

Luise Hensel Luise Hensel (30 March 1798 to 18 December 1876) was a German teacher and religious poet, who influenced the romantic style of her friend and fellow poet, Clemens Brentano. Life Luise Hensel was the sister of Wilhelm Hensel and the sister-in- ...

, German religious author and poet * Louise Mallard, a fictional character from " The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin * Louise Manning Hodgkins, American educator, author, editor * Louise Herschman Mannheimer, Czech-American writer, poet, school founder, inventor * Louise Markscheffel, American journalist, editor, critic *

Louise Chandler Moulton Louise Chandler Moulton (April 10, 1835 - August 10, 1908) was an American poet, story-writer and critic. Contributing poems and stories of power and grace to the leading magazines, ''Harper's Magazine'', '' The Atlantic'', '' The Galaxy'', the ...

, American poet, story-writer, critic * Luise von Ploennies, German poet * Louise Rennison (1951–2016), English author and comedian * Louise Hammond Willis Snead, American writer, lecturer, artist *

Louise Collier Willcox Louise Collier Willcox (, Collier; pen name, Clarence Wellford; April 24,1865September 13,1929) was an American author, editor, anthologist, translator, and suffragist. During her career, she worked for ''Harper's Weekly'', '' Harper's Bazaar'', ...

(1865–1929), American author, editor, anthologist, translator, suffragist *

Louise Wareham Leonard Louise Wareham Leonard is an American writer born in New Zealand. Early life and education Leonard immigrated to New York City in 1977 with her family. She graduated with a BA from Columbia College, Columbia University in 1987. She has an MA ...

, American author

Politicians

* Martha Louise Black (1866–1957), Canadian politician *

Louise Feltham Charlotte Beatrice Louise Feltham (22 March 1935 – 25 May 2020) was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1988 to 1993. She was a businessperson A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded ...

(1935–2020), Canadian politician * Louise Hardy (born 1959), Canadian politician * Louise Thibault (born 1946), Canadian politician

Royalty

Marie Luise von Degenfeld Luise von Degenfeld (28 November 1634 – 18 March 1677) was a German noblewoman and the morganatic second wife of Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine. Early life Born as Baroness Maria Susanne Luise von Degenfeld in Strasbourg, she was the dau ...

(1634–1677), countess *

Louise of Hesse-Kassel da, Louise Wilhelmine Frederikke Caroline Auguste Julie , succession = Queen consort of Denmark , image = Louise of Hesse-Kassel.jpg , reign = 15 November 1863 – 29 September 1898 , spouse = , issue = , house ...

(1817–1898), queen consort to

Christian IX Christian IX (8 April 181829 January 1906) was King of Denmark from 1863 until his death in 1906. From 1863 to 1864, he was concurrently Duke of Schleswig, Holstein and Lauenburg. A younger son of Frederick William, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein- ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...

Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz Duchess Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (Luise Auguste Wilhelmine Amalie; 10 March 1776 – 19 July 1810) was Queen of Prussia as the wife of King Frederick William III. The couple's happy, though short-lived, marriage produced nine chil ...

(1776–1810), the Queen of Prussia *

Louise Mountbatten Louise Alexandra Marie Irene Mountbatten (born Princess Louise of Battenberg; 13 July 1889 – 7 March 1965) was Queen of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until her death in 1965 as the wife of King Gustaf VI Adolf. Born a princess of the German H ...

(1889–1965), the Queen of Sweden *

Louise of Savoy Louise of Savoy (11 September 1476 – 22 September 1531) was a French noble and regent, Duchess '' suo jure'' of Auvergne and Bourbon, Duchess of Nemours, and the mother of King Francis I. She was politically active and served as the regent of ...

(1476–1531), regent of France * Archduchess Luise, Princess of Tuscany (1870–1947), the daughter of Ferdinand IV of Tuscany and his second wife Alicia of Parma *

Lady Louise Windsor Lady Louise Alice Elizabeth Mary Mountbatten-Windsor (born 8 November 2003) is the elder child of Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, and Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Forfar, both members of the British royal family. She is a grandd ...

(born 2003), youngest granddaughter of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

, daughter of her youngest son

Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, (Edward Antony Richard Louis; born 10 March 1964) is a member of the British royal family. He is the youngest child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the youngest sibl ...

and his wife,

Sophie, Countess of Wessex Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Forfar, (born Sophie Helen Rhys-Jones, 20 January 1965) is a member of the British royal family. She is married to Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and Forfar, the youngest brother of King Charles III. She grew ...

* Märtha Louise of Norway (born 1971), Norwegian Princess *

Duchess Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel Duchess Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (Luise Amalie; 29 January 1722 – 13 January 1780) was daughter of Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel and his wife Duchess Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel. Background She was b ...

(1722–1780) *

Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll Princess Louise, Duchess of Argyll, (Louisa Caroline Alberta; 18 March 1848 – 3 December 1939) was the sixth child and fourth daughter of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. In her public life, she was a strong proponent of the arts and higher ...

(1848–1939), fourth daughter of Queen Victoria

Sports

* Vilma Louise Abrahamsson (born 1999), Swedish football player * Louise Baxter (born 1983), Scottish field hockey defender * Louise Brough (1923–2014), American tennis player *

Louise Carroll Louise Carroll (born 12 December 1982 in Dundee) is a female field hockey defender from Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland ...

(born 1982), Scottish field hockey defender * Luise Krüger (1915–2001), German athlete who competed mainly in the javelin * Louise Lieberman (born 1977), American soccer coach and former player * Louise Miller (born 1960), English high jumper * Louise Sauvage (born 1973), Paralympian (Olympian in the Paralympics) *

Louise Vanhille Louise Vanhille (born 6 November 1998) is a retired French female artistic gymnast. She participated at the 2015 and 2018 World Championships. She represented France at the 2016 Summer Olympics where the French team finished eleventh, and Vanhil ...

(born 1998), French gymnast

Other professions

Louise Arbour Louise Bernice Arbour (born February 10, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer, prosecutor and jurist. Arbour was the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, a former justice of the Supreme Court of Canada and the Court of Appeal for Ontario and a former ...

(born 1947), Canadian lawyer and diplomat *

Louise Brown Louise Joy Brown (born 25 July 1978) is an English woman who was the first human to have been born after conception by ''in vitro'' fertilisation experiment (IVF). Her birth, following a procedure pioneered in Britain, has been lauded among "t ...

(born 1978), first human to be born after in vitro fertilisation, in the UK *

Louise Charron Louise Charron, (born March 2, 1951) is a Canadian jurist. She was appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada in October, 2004, and is the first native-born Franco-Ontarian Supreme Court judge. (This distinction has sometimes been attributed to Lo ...

(born 1951), Canadian lawyer *

Louise L. Chase Louise L. Chase ( Bond; September 2, 1840 – September 19, 1906) was an American social reformer. She was elected president of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (W.C.T.U.) of Middletown, Rhode Island, and elected president of the Woman's Fore ...

(1840-1906), American social reformer *

Luise Hercus Luise Anna Hercus , , (16 January 1926 – 15 April 2018) was a German-born linguist who lived in Australia from 1954. After significant early work on Middle Indo-Aryan dialects (Prakrits) she had specialised in Australian Aboriginal languages s ...

(1926–2018), German-born Australian linguist * Louise Jensen (died 1994), Danish murder victim * Louise Macdonald, national director of the Institute of Directors in Scotland * Louise de Marillac (1591–1660), co-founder of the Daughters of Charity and Roman Catholic saint * Louise O'Sullivan (born 1973), Irish telecommunications executive * Louise Ravelli (born 1963), Australian linguist *

Louise Reed Stowell Louise Reed Stowell (, Reed; December 23, 1850 – February 2, 1932) was an American scientist, microscopist, author, and editor. She was the University of Michigan's first woman teacher (1877–89), and the first woman appointed on District of Co ...

(1850–1932), American scientist and author * Louise van den Plas (1877–1968), Belgian suffragist

Fictional characters

*Louise, a character in the manga and anime series '' Attack on Titan'' *Louise the Lady of Violets, wife of the sage Lord Pent and a character in '' Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade'' * Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière, female protagonist in the light novel, anime, and manga series '' Zero no Tsukaima'' *Louise Brooks, one of the main characters in the BBC sitcom '' Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps'' *Louise Belcher, one of the main characters in animated sitcom ''

Bob's Burgers ''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob and Linda and their three children, Tina, Gene, and Louise—who ...

'' *Louise Darling, a friend of Ruby with brown fur in '' Max & Ruby'' *Louise Grimsley Capice, long running character in the crime/mystery serial ''

The Edge of Night ''The Edge of Night'' is an American television mystery crime drama series and soap opera, created by Irving Vendig and produced by Procter & Gamble Productions. It debuted on CBS on April 2, 1956, and ran as a live broadcast on that networ ...

'' * Louise Halevy, supporting character from the ''

Gundam 00 is a Japanese anime television series, the eleventh installment in Sunrise studio's long-running ''Gundam'' franchise comprising two seasons. The series is set on a futuristic Earth and is centered on the exploits of the fictional paramilita ...

'' franchise *Lighthouse Louise, a female snail from the ''

SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American Animated series, animated Television comedy, comedy Television show, television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It ...

'' episode "

Lighthouse Louie The twelfth season of the American animated television series '' SpongeBob SquarePants'', created by former marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, began airing on Nickelodeon in the United States on November 11, 2018, and ended on Ap ...

", used to be named Louie, but when she revealed that she has newborn baby snails, she became Louise * Louise Jefferson (nicknamed "Weezie"), neighbor of

Archie Bunker Archie is a masculine given name, a diminutive of Archibald. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname *Archie Alexander (1888–1958), African-American mathematician, engineer and governor of the US Virgin Islands * Archie Blake (mathemati ...

in ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series '' Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'' and a main character in the spin-off ''

The Jeffersons ''The Jeffersons'' is an American sitcom television series that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, to July 2, 1985, lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes. ''The Jeffersons'' is one of the longest-running sitcoms in history, ...

'' *Louise Mallard, main character from " The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin *Louise Sidell, the title character's closest friend in the

Penny Parker Penny Parker was the heroine of a series of 17 books written by Mildred Wirt (Benson) and published from 1939 through 1947. Penny was a high school student turned sleuth who also sporadically worked as a reporter for her father's newspaper, ''T ...

books