Frank (given name)

Frank /ˈfræŋk/ is a masculine given name.

Contents

• In arts and entertainment
• In architecture
• In comics
• In film and television
• In literature
• In music
• In radio
• In sports
• In visual arts and animation
• Other
• References

Ultimately from the Germanic tribal name of the Franks, in the early medieval Frankish Empire, the status of being "a Frank" became synonymous with that of a free man; hence also the English adjective frank (Middle English, from Old French franc, 12th century).

Use as a given name seems to arise already in the Carolingian period; the Old High German form Francho, Franko is on record from the 8th century. While Frank is a given name in its own right, in fact reflecting the Old Frankish form *Frank, the given name in the United States arose again in the 20th century as a short form of Francis (which is itself a shortening of Franciscus, i.e. "the Frenchman", in reference to Saint Francis of Assisi), as popularized by Frank Sinatra (born Francis Albert Sinatra, 1915–1998).