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Elke

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elke
PronunciationElke: German: [ˈɛlkə], English: /ˈɛlkə/
Elka: German: [ˈɛlka], English: /ˈɛlkə/
Elkie: English: /ˈɛlki/
Alke: German: [ˈalkə]
GenderFemale
Language(s)Low German and East Frisian, Yiddish
Origin
Meaning"of noble birth"
Other names
Related namesAdelheid, Elkan, Elkanah, Elkie, Elka and Alke
Popularitysee popular names

Elke (see panel for pronunciation) is a feminine given name. Different sources give different accounts of its origin. One source describes it as a Low German and East Frisian diminutive of Adelheid, meaning "of noble birth".[1] Another states that it originated as a Yiddish feminine variant of Elkan, which itself came from the Biblical name Elkanah.[2]

In English-speaking countries, the variant Elkie was popularised by the singer Elkie Brooks.[2] Other German variants of the name include Elka and Alke.[1]

In the United States, the 1990 census found that Elke was the 2,588th most common given name for women, being held by about 0.002% of the female population at the time, while the other variants Elkie, Elka, and Alke were not among the names held by at least 0.001% of the female population (the most common 4,275 names).[3]

People

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Elke

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Elka

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Elkie

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  • Elkie Brooks (born Elaine Bookbinder, 1945), English singer
  • Elkie Chong (born Chong Ting-yan, 1998), Hong Kong singer

Fictional characters

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  • Elke Haien, the wife of the main character in the 1888 German novel The Rider on the White Horse by Theodor Storm
  • Elka Ostrovsky, from the 2010–2015 American television show Hot in Cleveland
  • Fräulein Elke, a travesti performer from the 1972 film Cabaret

References

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  1. ^ a b Schaffer-Suchomel, Joachim (2009). Nomen est Omen: Die verborgene Botschaft der Vornamen - Von Adam bis Zarah. Arkana Publishing. pp. 47–48. ISBN 9783641016722. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  2. ^ a b Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 171. ISBN 9780198610601. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  3. ^ "Names Files". 1990 Census. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
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