(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.
Americanized form of any of the numerous Continental European surnames derived from Latin Cornelius (see Cornelius), for example French Corneille or German Kornel.
Swedish: Latinized form of Horn, meaning ‘horn’; probably a soldier's name.
English: reduced form of Cornwell or of Cornhill, a habitational name from a place in Northumberland named Cornhill, from Old English corn, a metathesized form of cron, cran ‘crane’ + halh ‘nook’, ‘recess’; or from Cornhill in London, a medieval grain exchange, named with Old English corn ‘corn’, ‘grain’ + hyll ‘hill’, or from some other place elsewhere similarly named.
FOREBEARS Ezra Cornell (1807–74), the founder of Cornell University, was born of New England Quaker stock in Westchester Co., NY, a descendant of Thomas Cornell of Saffron Walden, Essex, England, who emigrated sometime before 1642, when he is recorded as being married in Portsmouth, Newport Co., RI.
