Meir () is a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

male Male (Planet symbols, symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or Egg cell, ovum, in the process of fertilisation. A male organism cannot sexual repro ...

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

and an occasional

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

. It means "one who shines". It is often Germanized as

Maier Maier is a surname of German origin. It is a variant spelling of the more usual " Meyer", which is cognate with the English word "mayor", but with a different meaning. Individuals with the surname include: * Anneliese Maier (1905–1971), Germ ...

, Mayer,

Mayr Mayr is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Andrea Mayr (born 1979), Austrian female long-distance runner * Ernst Mayr (1904–2005), German American evolutionary biologist * Franz Xaver Mayr (1875–1965), Austrian gastro ...

, Meier, Meyer,

Meijer Meijer Inc. (, ) is an American supercenter chain that primarily operates throughout the Midwestern United States. Its corporate headquarters are in Walker, Michigan. Founded in 1934 as a supermarket chain, Meijer is credited with pioneering ...

, Italianized as Miagro, or Anglicized as Mayer, Meyer, or

Myer Myer (stylised MYER) is an Australian mid-range to upscale department store. It trades in all Australian states and one of Australia's two self-governing territories. Myer retails a broad range of products across women's, men's, and child ...

. Alfred J. Kolatch, ''These Are The Names'' (New York: Jonathan David Co., 1948), pp. 157, 160. Notable people with the name include: Given name: *

Rabbi Meir Rabbi Meir () was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishnah. He was one of the Tannaim of the fourth generation (139–163), and a disciple of Rabbi Akiva. He is the second most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah and is mentioned ...

, Jewish sage who lived in the time of the

Mishna The Mishnah or the Mishna (; , from the verb ''šānā'', "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first written collection of the Jewish oral traditions that are known as the Oral Torah. Having been collected in the 3rd century CE, it is ...

* Meir Amit (1921–2009), Israeli general and politician * Meir Ariel (1942–1999), Israeli singer/songwriter *

Meir Bar-Ilan Meir Bar-Ilan (; – ) was an orthodox rabbi, author, and religious Zionist activist, who served as leader of the Mizrachi movement in the United States and Mandatory Palestine. Bar-Ilan University, founded in 1955, was named in his honou ...

(1880–1949), rabbi and Religious Zionism leader *Meir Ben Baruch (1215–1293) aka

Meir of Rothenburg Meir of Rothenburg ( 1215 – 2 May 1293) was a German Rabbi and poet, as well as a major contributing author of the ''tosafot'' on Rashi's commentary on the Talmud. He is also known as Meir ben Baruch (), and by the Hebrew language acr ...

, a German rabbi, poet, and author * Meir Daloya (born 1956), Olympic weightlifter *

Meir Dizengoff Meir Dizengoff (; born Meer Yankelevich Dizengof, ); 25 February 1861 – 23 September 1936) was a Zionism, Zionist leader and politician and the founder and first Mayor of Tel Aviv, mayor of Tel Aviv (1911–1922 as head of town planning, 1922� ...

(1861–1936), Israeli politician *

Meir Har-Zion Meir Har-Zion (; February 25, 1934 – March 14, 2014) was an Israeli military Commando (military), commando. As a key member of Unit 101, he was highly praised by Chief of Staff Moshe Dayan who described him as "the finest of our commando soldie ...

(1934–2014), Israeli commando fighter *

Meir Dagan Aluf Meir Dagan (; 30 January 1945 – 17 March 2016) was an Israel Defense Forces Major General (reserve) and Director of the Mossad. Personal life and education Meir Huberman (later Dagan) was born on a train on the outskirts of Kherson, b ...

(1945–2016),

Mossad The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations (), popularly known as Mossad ( , ), is the national intelligence agency of the Israel, State of Israel. It is one of the main entities in the Israeli Intelligence Community, along with M ...

chief *

Meir Kahane Meir David HaKohen Kahane ( ; ; born Martin David Kahane; August 1, 1932 – November 5, 1990) was an American-born Israel, Israeli Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox ordained rabbi, writer and ultra-nationalist politician. Founder of the Israeli pol ...

(1932–1990), rabbi and political activist *

Meir Lublin Meir Lublin or Meir ben Gedalia (1558 – 1616) was a Polish rabbi, Talmudist and Posek ("decisor of Jewish law"). He is well known for his commentary on the Talmud, ''Meir Einai Chachamim''. He is also referred to as MaHaRam (Hebrew acronym: "O ...

(1558–1616), Polish rabbi, Talmudist and Posek *

Meir Nitzan Meir Nitzan (; 18 May 1931 – 19 April 2025) was an Israeli politician. He was mayor of Rishon LeZion for five consecutive terms. Background Meir Nitzan was born in Bucharest, Romania as Meir Mintz. He lived in a displaced persons' camp in Cyp ...

(born 1931), the mayor of Rishon-LeZion, Israel *

Meir Pa'il Meir Pa'il (‎; 19 June 1926 – 15 September 2015) was an Israeli politician, military historian and a former colonel in the Israel Defense Forces. Biography Meir Pilevsky (later Pa'il) was born in Jerusalem during the Mandate era. His pa ...

(1926–2015), Israeli politician and military historian *

Meir Shalev Meir Shalev (; 29 July 1948 – 11 April 2023) was an Israeli writer and newspaper columnist for the daily Yedioth Ahronoth. Shalev's books have been translated into 26 languages. Biography Shalev was born in Nahalal, Israel. Later he lived ...

(1948–2023), Israeli writer *

Meir Shamgar Meir Shamgar (; August 13, 1925 – October 18, 2019) was the chief justice of the Israeli Supreme Court from 1983 to 1995. Biography Meir Shamgar (Sterenberg or Sternberg) was born in the Free City of Danzig (present-day Gdańsk, Poland) to E ...

(1925–2019), Israeli President of the Israeli Supreme Court *

Meir Shapiro Yehuda Meir Shapiro (; 3 March 1887 – 27 October 1933) was a prominent Polish Hasidic rabbi and rosh yeshiva, also known as the Lubliner Rav. He is noted for his promotion of the Daf Yomi study program in 1923, and establishing the Cha ...

(1887–1933), Hasidic Rabbi and creator of the Daf Yomi * Meir Simcha of Dvinsk (1843–1926), rabbi and leader of Orthodox Judaism in Eastern Europe * Meir Zorea (1923–1995), Israeli general and politician *

Meir Sheetrit Meir Sheetrit (; born 10 October 1948) is an Israeli politician. He served as a member of the Knesset in two spells for Likud between 1981 and 1988, and again from 1992 until 2005, when he joined Kadima. He remained a Knesset member for Kadima u ...

(born 1948), a current Israeli Knesset member for the Kadima party * Meir Talmi (1909–1994), Israeli politician * Meir Tamari (1927–2021), South African-Israeli economist * Meir Tapiro (born 1975), Israeli basketball player, and current CEO of Ironi Nes Ziona * Meir Teomi (1898–1947), Ukrainian actor * Meir Teper, American film producer and businessman * Meir Tobianski (1904–1948), Israeli officer wrongly executed as a traitor * Israel Meir Kagan (1838–1933), Polish rabbi, Halakhist and ethicist * Yisrael Meir Lau (born 1937), the Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv, Israel * Yitzchak Meir Alter (1799–1866), Polish rabbi and founder of the Ger (Hasidic dynasty) within Hasidic Judaism Surname: * Elchanan Meir (1936–2014), Israeli psychologist * Gideon Meir (1947–2021), Israeli diplomat *

Golda Meir Golda Meir (; 3 May 1898 – 8 December 1978) was the prime minister of Israel, serving from 1969 to 1974. She was Israel's first and only female head of government. Born into a Jewish family in Kyiv, Kiev, Russian Empire (present-day Ukraine) ...

(1898–1978), a founder of the modern State of Israel, Hebraicized from Meyerson * Jessica Meir (born 1977), comparative physiology researcher, astronaut, and aquanaut * Nati Meir (born 1955), Romanian politician Localities *

Meir, Antwerp Meir is the main shopping street in Antwerp, Belgium. It is the most important shopping area in the country, both by number of shoppers and by rent prices. The street has been mostly pedestrianised since 1993 and is said to be the Belgian equi ...

, shopping street in Antwerp, Belgium *

Meir, Egypt The necropolis of Meir () is an archaeological site in Middle Egypt in the Asyut Governorate located on the west bank of the Nile. Here are the graves of the nomarchs, mayors and priests of Cusae from the ancient Egyptian Old and Middle Kingdo ...

* Meir, Staffordshire

References

Jewish masculine given names Masculine given names Surnames of Jewish origin Hebrew masculine given names {{Interwiki extra, qid=Q407039

See also

References