AARON GRANT

Biblical name, borne by the brother of Moses, who was appointed by God to be Moses' spokesman and became the first High Priest of the Israelites (Exodus 4:14–16, 7:1–2). It is of uncertain origin and meaning: most probably, like Moses, of Egyptian rather than Hebrew origin. The traditional derivation from Hebrew har-on ‘mountain of strength’ is no more than a folk etymology. The name has been in regular use from time immemorial as a Jewish name and was taken up by the Nonconformists as a Christian name in the 16th century. Since the late 1990s it has been widely popular.

English and (especially) Scottish (of Norman origin), and French: nickname from Anglo-Norman French graund, graunt ‘tall’, ‘large’ (Old French grand, grant, from Latin grandis), given either to a person of remarkable size, or else in a relative way to distinguish two bearers of the same personal name, often representatives of different generations within the same family.