ALBERT WHITE

From an Old French name, Albert, of Germanic (Frankish) origin, derived from adal ‘noble’ + berht ‘bright, famous’. This was adopted by the Normans and introduced by them to England, displacing the Old English form Æþelbeorht. The name is popular in a variety of forms in Western Europe, and has been traditional in a number of European princely families. It was out of favour in England for centuries, however, and the revival of its popularity in the 19th century was largely in honour of Queen Victoria's consort, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.

English, Scottish, and Irish: from Middle English whit ‘white’, hence a nickname for someone with white hair or an unnaturally pale complexion. In some cases it represents a Middle English personal name, from an Old English byname, Hwīt(a), of this origin. As a Scottish and Irish surname it has been widely used as a translation of the many Gaelic names based on bán ‘white’ (see Bain 1) or fionn ‘fair’ (see Finn 1). There has also been some confusion with Wight.