Alphons (Latinized Alphonsus, Adelphonsus, or Adefonsus) is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic Kingdom in the Iberian Peninsula. In the later medieval period it became a standard name in the Hispanic and Portuguese royal families.[1]

Alphons
GenderMale
Origin
Word/nameGermanic languages
Meaning"Noble brave"
Popularitysee popular names

It is derived from a Gothic name, or a conflation of several Gothic names; from *Aþalfuns, composed of the elements aþal "noble" and funs "eager, brave, ready", and perhaps influenced by names such as *Alafuns, *Adefuns and *Hildefuns. It is recorded as Adefonsus in the 9th and 10th century,[2] and as Adelfonsus, Adelphonsus in the 10th to 11th. The reduced form Alfonso is recorded in the late 9th century, and the Portuguese form Afonso from the early 11th[3][4] and Anfós in Catalan from the 12th century until the 15th.[5]

Variants of the name include: Alonso (Spanish), Alfonso (Spanish and Italian), Alfons (Dutch, German, Catalan, Polish, Croatian and Scandinavian), Afonso (Portuguese and Galician), Alphonse, Alfonse (French and English), etc.

Middle Ages

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Iberian royal families

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Asturias/Leon/Castile/Spain
Aragon & Naples

Other

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Early modern period

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Modern period

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Iberian/Sicilian nobility

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Alfons

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Alphonse

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Alfonso

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Alfonse

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Alphonso

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  • Alphonso Davies, Canadian soccer player born in Ghana, who grew up in Edmonton

As a surname

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Alphonse, Alphonso, Alfonso is occasionally seen as a surname derived from the given name, the latter descending from Asturias and Cantabria.[6]

Pseudonym

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  • Bill Alfonso, ring name of William Matthew Sierra, former professional wrestling referee & manager

Stage name

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Fictional characters

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Alphonso" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. I (9th ed.). 1878. pp. 615–619.
  2. ^ In the genitive, Adefonsi.
  3. ^ José Pedro Machado, Dicionário Onomástico Etimológico da Língua Portuguesa
  4. ^ E. Förstemann, Altdeutsches Namenbuch (1856:133, 145).
  5. ^ Diccionari d'Història de Catalunya; 62nd ed.; Barcelona; 1998; ISBN 84-297-3521-6; p. 25.
  6. ^ "Heraldica del apellido Alfonso".