(male) English form of a common biblical name (meaning ‘who is like God?’ in Hebrew) borne by one of the archangels, the protector of the ancient Hebrews, who is also regarded as a saint of the Catholic Church. In the Middle Ages, Michael was regarded as captain of the heavenly host (see Revelation 12:7–9), symbol of the Church Militant, and patron of soldiers. He was often depicted bearing a flaming sword. The name is also borne by a Persian prince and ally of Belshazzar mentioned in the Book of Daniel. Since the early 1900s it has been one of the most enduringly popular boys' names in the English-speaking world. See also Michal.
Cognates: Irish: Mícheál. Scottish Gaelic: Mìcheal. Welsh: Meical, Mihangel. German: Michael. Dutch: Michaël, Machiel. Scandinavian: Mikael. Danish, Norwegian: Mikkel. French: Michel. Spanish, Portuguese: Miguel. Catalan: Miquel. Italian: Michele. Russian: Mikhail. Polish: Michał. Czech: Michal. Croatian: Mihovil. Serbian: Mihajlo. Slovenian: Mihael. Finnish: Mikko. Hungarian: Mihály.
Short forms: Mike, Mick.
Pet forms: Mick(e)y, Mikey.
English: topographic name for someone who lived beside a stream, from northern Middle English bekke ‘stream’ (Old Norse bekkr).
English (of Norman origin): habitational name from any of various places in northern France, for example Bec Hellouin in Eure, named with Old Norman French bec ‘stream’, from the same Old Norse root as in 1.
English: probably a nickname for someone with a prominent nose, from Middle English beke ‘beak (of a bird)’ (Old French bec).
English: metonymic occupational name for a maker, seller, or user of mattocks or pickaxes, from Old English becca. In some cases the name may represent a survival of an Old English byname derived from this word.
German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name for a baker, a cognate of Baker, from (older) South German beck, West Yiddish bek. Some Jewish bearers of the name claim that it is an acronym of Hebrew benkedoshim ‘son of martyrs’, i.e. a name taken by one whose parents had been martyred for being Jews.
North German: topographic name for someone who lived by a stream, from Low German Beke ‘stream’. Compare the High German form Bach 1.
Scandinavian: habitational name for someone from a farmstead named Bekk, Bæk, or Bäck, or a topographic name for someone who lived by a stream.
