Laurie

  • [ LAWR-ee (English), LOW-ree (Dutch) ]
  • English, Dutch
Diminutive of LAURA or LAURENCE (1).

LAURA   female   English, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian, Polish, Slovene, Croatian, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, German, Dutch, Late Roman
Feminine form of the Late Latin name Laurus, which meant "laurel". This meaning was favourable, since in ancient Rome the leaves of laurel trees were used to create victors' garlands. The name was borne by the 9th-century Spanish martyr Saint Laura, who was a nun thrown into a vat of molten lead by the Moors. It was also the name of the subject of poems by the 14th-century Italian poet Petrarch.

As an English name, Laura has been used since the 13th century. Famous bearers include Laura Secord (1775-1868), a Canadian heroine during the War of 1812, and Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867-1957), an American author who wrote the 'Little House on the Prairie' series of novels.
LAURENCE (1)   male   English
From the Roman cognomen Laurentius, which meant "from Laurentum". Laurentum was a city in ancient Italy, its name probably deriving from Latin laurus "laurel". Saint Laurence was a 3rd-century deacon and martyr from Rome. According to tradition he was roasted alive on a gridiron because, when ordered to hand over the church's treasures, he presented the sick and poor. Due to the saint's popularity, the name came into general use in the Christian world (in various spellings).

In the Middle Ages this name was common in England, partly because of a second saint by this name, a 7th-century archbishop of Canterbury. Likewise it has been common in Ireland due to the 12th-century Saint Laurence O'Toole (whose real name was Lorcán). Since the 19th century the spelling Lawrence has been more common, especially in America. A famous bearer was the British actor Laurence Olivier (1907-1989).
FULL FORMS
DUTCH: Laura
ENGLISH: Laura, Lauren, Laurence, Laurinda, Lawrence, Lora, Loreen, Lorene, Loretta, Lorinda
EQUIVALENTS
ANCIENT ROMAN: Laurentius
CATALAN: Llora, Llorenç
CROATIAN: Laura, Lovre, Lovrenco, Lovro
CZECH: Vavřinec
DANISH: Lars, Lasse, Laura, Laurits, Lauritz, Lorens
DUTCH: Laurie
ENGLISH: Larrie, Larry, Laureen, Laurene, Lauressa, Laurie, Laurissa, Lawrie, Loren, Lori, Lorie, Lorin, Lorri, Lorrie, Lorrin
ESTONIAN: Laura
FINNISH: Lari, Lars, Lasse, Lassi, Laura, Lauri
FRENCH: Enzo, Laure, Laurent, Laurette, Laurine, Lorette
FRISIAN: Lourens
GERMAN: Lars, Laura, Laurenz, Lenz, Lorenz
GREEK: Lavrentios
HUNGARIAN: Laura, Lőrinc
ICELANDIC: Lára, Lárus
IRISH: Labhrás
ITALIAN: Enzo, Laura, Lauretta, Lora, Lorenzo, Loretta, Loris, Lorita, Renzo
LATE ROMAN: Laura
LIMBURGISH: Lau, Lor
LITHUANIAN: Laurynas
MEDIEVAL ENGLISH: Larkin, Law
MEDIEVAL SCANDINAVIAN: Lars
MEDIEVAL SPANISH: Lorencio
NORWEGIAN: Lars, Lasse, Laura, Laurits, Lauritz, Lorens
POLISH: Laura, Wawrzyniec
PORTUGUESE: Laura, Lourenço
ROMANIAN: Laura, Laurențiu
RUSSIAN: Lavrenti, Lavrentiy, Lavrenty
SCOTTISH: Labhrainn
SLOVAK: Vavrinec
SLOVENE: Laura, Lavra, Lovrenc, Lovro
SPANISH: Laura, Laurita, Lorenzo
SWEDISH: Lars, Lasse, Laura, Lorens
WELSH: Lowri
DIMINUTIVES AND SHORT FORMS
ENGLISH: Laz
MASCULINE FORMS
ITALIAN: Lauro
LATE ROMAN: Laurus
FEMININE FORMS
ANCIENT ROMAN: Laurentia
ENGLISH: Laryn, Lauren, Laurena, Laurencia, Lauryn, Loren, Lorena
FRENCH: Laurence
ITALIAN: Lorenza
SPANISH: Lorenza
OTHER FORMS
ANCIENT ROMAN: Laurentina, Laurentinus
ENGLISH: Lauraine, Lawson
FRENCH: Laurentin, Laurentine