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Summary
- No one named Genevieve, Genoveva or Genovefa appears in the Bible, and the name has no Hebrew meaning.
- Genevieve is the English form of the French Geneviève, from the medieval Genovefa, whose origin is uncertain: possibly Germanic “clan” and “woman,” possibly Gaulish.
- Saint Genevieve (born about 420, died about 512) is the patron saint of Paris; her feast is 3 January.
- Medieval accounts of her life say that in 451 she called the women of Paris to fast and pray against Attila’s Huns, as Esther and Judith had done (Esther 4:16).
- She later brought grain to besieged Paris by river and proposed the church in which she was buried.
- In the United States the name ranked 76th in 1914–1916, fell to 691st in 1968, and ranked 148th in 2025.
Bibliography (Click to show)
- Behind the Name, “Genevieve,” “Geneviève” and “Geneva,” with United States popularity figures from Social Security Administration data and French name days. https://www.behindthename.com/name/genevieve
- Andrew MacErlean, “St. Genevieve,” The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 6 (1909). https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06413f.htm
- “Genovefa, patron saint of Paris and France,” in Henry Wace, ed., Dictionary of Christian Biography and Literature to the End of the Sixth Century (1911), on the date and reliability of her Life. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Dictionary_of_Christian_Biography_and_Literature_to_the_End_of_the_Sixth_Century/Genovefa,_patron_saint_of_Paris_and_France
- Jacobus de Voragine, The Golden Legend, “The Life of S. Genevieve,” in William Caxton’s English translation (1483), vol. 3. Internet Medieval Sourcebook, Fordham University. https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/basis/goldenlegend/GoldenLegend-Volume3.asp
- “Genevieve,” Wikipedia, on the Frankish siege, the Abbey of Saint Genevieve, the Panthéon and her relics. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genevieve
- “Geneviève (c. 422–512),” Women in World History, via Encyclopedia.com. https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/genevieve-c-422-512
- “Book of Judith,” Wikipedia, on its place in Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant Bibles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Judith
- Scripture quotation: Esther 4:16, English Standard Version.
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