(male) One of the many French names of Germanic origin that were introduced into Britain by the Normans; it has since remained in continuous use. It is derived from the nearly synonymous elements hrōd ‘fame’ + berht ‘bright, famous’, and had a native Old English predecessor of similar form (Hreodbeorht), which was supplanted by the Norman name. Two dukes of Normandy in the 11th century bore the name: the father of William the Conqueror (sometimes identified with the legendary Robert the Devil), and his eldest son. It was borne also by three kings of Scotland, notably Robert the Bruce (1274–1329), who freed Scotland from English domination. The altered short form Bob is very common, but Hob and Dob, which were common in the Middle Ages and gave rise to surnames, are extinct. See also Rupert.
Short forms: Bob, Rob.
Pet forms: Bobby, Robbie, Robin.
Cognates: Irish: Roibéard. Scottish Gaelic: Raibeart. German: Robert, Rupprecht. Dutch: Robrecht, Rob(b)ert. Scandinavian: Robert. French: Robert. Spanish, Portuguese, Italian: Roberto. Czech: Robert. Finnish: Roopertti. Hungarian: Róbert. Latvian: Roberts.
Dutch: variant spelling of Kroll.
Polish (Król) and Jewish (from Polish): from Polish król ‘king’, a Polish nickname for someone with a superior manner or for a leader in a community, or a metonymic occupational name for someone who worked in a royal household. As a Jewish name it is an ornamental adoption. Compare Kral.
Polish and Jewish (eastern Ashkenazic): nickname or ornamental name from Polish król ‘rabbit’, Ukrainian krol. See also Krolik.
FOREBEARS The Dutch colonial official Bastiaen Jansen Krol (1595–1674) was born at Harlingen in Friesland. He emigrated to New Netherland in 1626 with authority to perform the ceremonies of baptism and marriage. At various times from 1626 to 1643 he was commissary and director at Fort Orange (Albany), NY.
