DORCAS GREEN

From Greek dorkas ‘doe, gazelle’. It was not used as a personal name by the ancient Greeks, but is offered in the Bible as an interpretation of the Aramaic name Tabitha (Acts 9:36), and was taken up by the early Christians. It was much used among the Puritans in the 16th century, and has remained in occasional use ever since, having also been used as an Anglicized form of Gaelic Deòiridh.

English: one of the most common and widespread of English surnames, either a nickname for someone who was fond of dressing in this color (Old English grēne) or who had played the part of the ‘Green Man’ in the May Day celebrations, or a topographic name for someone who lived near a village green, Middle English grene (a transferred use of the color term). In North America this name has no doubt assimilated cognates from other European languages, notably German Grün (see Gruen).