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Beavis

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Beavis comes from an old French name meaning “Dear Son.”

History:
Beavis’s ultimate origin is the Frankish name Bobo or Bovo, similar to the Old English name Bobba. The Normans introduced the name to England in its French form, Beauves, Beves, or Bevis.

The name can be found throughout the Middle Ages in England, kept alive through the popular romance “Sir Bevis of Hampton.”

Bevis experienced a minor revival in the Victorian era, helped along with a false etymology, that associated it with the French word “beau” (beautiful) and Richard Jefferies 1882 novel Bevis, the story of a boy about a young boy’s adventures in the country.


Pronunciation: bee-vis, bev-us.

Diminutives: Bevis.

Alternates: Bevis, Beves.

Famous Bearers:
Fictional Characters:
Bevis of Hampton (14th century)
From a medieval European romance.
Beavis (1993-1997)
From a crude MTV cartoon entitled Beavis and Butthead about two really dim teenagers.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
less than 0.004 % named Beavis, Bevis, etc.

Popularity of Beavis:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1900-2000: N/A

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