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coined from Esther Vanhomrigh (Van + Es → Vanessa) Vany, Ness, Nessa, Vanny, Vaness, Nessi, Vans, Nester, Nessie, Nessy, V, Van Vane (Spanish), Vanessza (Hungarian), Wanesa (Polish), Vanasia |
Vanessa is a feminine given name, especially popular in the United States, Germany and Brazil. It was invented by the Anglo-Irish writer Jonathan Swift for Esther Vanhomrigh, whom Swift had met in 1708 and whom he tutored. The name was created by taking "Van" from Vanhomrigh's last name and adding "Essa", a pet form of Esther.
In 1726 the name Vanessa appeared in print for the first time in Cadenus and Vanessa, an autobiographical poem about Swift's relationship with Vanhomrigh. Swift had written the poem in 1713, but it was not published until three years after Vanhomrigh died. Vanessa has been adopted later as the name of a genus of butterfly by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1807.
Vanessa was the 71st most popular name for girls born in the United States in 2007. It has been among the top 200 names for girls in the United States since 1953 and among the top 100 names for girls since 1977. It first appeared among the top 1,000 names for girls in the United States in 1950, when it appeared on the list ranked in 939th place.
In Germany Vanessa has been among the top 100 names for girls since 1976. The name became more and more popular and was the 7th most popular name for girls in the 1990s. In the following years its popularity dropped and the name is ranked in 42nd place for the decade 2000–2009.
Arabic: فانيسا (Fānīsā)
Belarusian: Ванэса (Vanesa)
Bulgarian: Ванеса (Vanesa)
Chinese (Simplified) 凡妮莎 (Fánnīshā) (Traditional) 凡妮莎 (Fánnīshā)
Czech: Vanesa
Greek: Βανέσσα
Gujarati: વેનેસા (Vēnēsā)
Hebrew: ונסה (Venesa)
Hindi: वेनेसा (Vēnēsā)
Hungarian: Vanessza
Japanese: ヴァネサ (Vanesa)
Korean: 바네사 (Banesa)
Macedonian: Ванеса (Vanesa)
Mongolian: Ванесса (Vanyessa)
Persian: ونسا (Wanisā)
Russian: Ванесса (Vanessa)
Serbian: Ванеса (Vanesa)
Slovak: Vanesa
Tamil: வனேசா (Vaṉēcā)
Telugu: వెనెస్సా (Venes'sā)
Thai: วาเนสซ่า (Wānes̄s̀ā)
Ukrainian: Ванесса (Vanessa)
Urdu: وینیسا (Wanysā)
Yiddish: וואַנעססאַ (Vanessa)
Vanessa Ament, American foley artist and author
Vanessa Anderson, Australian teen whose death led to the Garling Report
Vanessa Amorosi, Australian singer
Vanessa Barrs, Australian veterinary scientist
Vanessa Bayer, American actress, comedian and cast member from Saturday Night Live
Vanessa Beecroft, Italian artist
Vanessa Bell, English artist and the sister of author Virginia Woolf
Vanessa Bell Calloway, American actress
Vanessa Carlton, American singer best known for her hit single "A Thousand Miles"
Vanessa da Mata, Brazilian singer
Vanessa Daou, American artist
Vanessa Duriès, French writer
Vanessa Feltz, English journalist and broadcaster
Vanessa Ferlito, American actress
Vanessa Ferrari, Italian gymnast
Vanessa García, Puerto Rican freestyle swimmer
Vanessa Grigoriadis, American journalist
Vanessa Hessler, American-Italian model and actress
Vanessa Hudgens, American actress and singer
Vanessa Huppenkothen, Mexican model, actress, and presenter
Vanessa Johansson, American actress, sister of Scarlett Johansson
Vanessa King, Canadian actress
Vanessa Lachey, American television personality, television host, and actress
Vanessa Lengies, Canadian actress
Vanessa de Lisle, British fashion journalist
Vanessa Mae, British pop and classical musician, especially noted for her violin skills
Vanessa Marano, American actress
Vanessa Marcil, American actress
Vanessa Marshall, American actress and voice actress
Vanessa Morley, Canadian voice actress
Vanessa Paradis, French actress and singer
Vanessa Porto, Brazilian mixed martial artist
Vanessa Redgrave, English actress and political activist
Vanessa Ray, American Actress (Pretty Little Liars)
Vanessa Ward (née Browne), Australian high jumper
Vanessa Watts, West Indian cricketer
Vanessa A. Williams, American actress
Vanessa L. Williams, American model, singer, songwriter, and actress
Vanessa R. Williams, American gospel singer
Vanessa White, English singer with The Saturdays
Vanessa Zahorian American ballerina
Vanessa (King of Fighters), a character in SNK Playmore's The King of Fighters video game series
Vanessa, a character in the Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide American sitcom
Vanessa Doofenshmirtz, Dr Doofensmirtz's daughter in the animated television series Phineas and Ferb
Vanessa Fisk, wife of mobster Wilson Fisk, Kingpin of Crime in the Marvel Comic Universe
Vanessa Huxtable, a character on the American television sitcom The Cosby Show
Vanessa "Nessie" Kapatelis, supporting character in the Wonder Woman comic book series
Vanessa Lewis, a character in the Virtua_Fighter video game series
Vanessa, the alias of Disney's The Little Mermaid character Ursula in the 1989 film
Vanessa Abrams, a character on the television series Gossip Girl
The Groovy Girls doll line, by Manhattan Toy, features two dolls named Vanessa, one of which is one of the main six.
Vanessa Gold, a character from the British soap opera, EastEnders
Vanessa Villante, a character from the Australian soap opera, Neighbours
Vanessa Woodfield, a character from the British soap opera, Emmerdale
Vanessa Kensington, British secret agent from the Austin Powers series.
Vanessa (name) Wikipedia (Text) CC BY-SA