Jordan
m.
Hebrew הַיַּרְדֵּ֔ן, the name of the river in Palestine in which Jesus was baptised by John the Baptist. The origin of the name is uncertain, but is possibly derives from a root meaning 'to descend, flow down'. Withycombe s.n. Jordan hypothesizes an Old German Jordanes of independent origin (deriving from Old Norse jǫrð 'land, earth'), but Morlet II:66b notes that the name was adopted as a Roman cognomen and then adopted by Christians. The name's popularity dates from the Crusader era, though it is found in France from the 9th C onwards.
The name of a 10th C bishop of Poland. Wycliffite Bible (1395): Jordan.
The English diminutives Jud and Jude are witnessed in 1379 in the relational bynames Judsoñ (WRYPT1 p. 162) and Jude Doghter (WRYPT1 p. 163).
- Algeria
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- Old Occitan
- ● 1293 Jordan (obl) ChartBB II
- Belgium
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- Middle Dutch
- ● 1336 Jordane (dat) RSG1336-39 p. 22
- England
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- Latin
- ● 1155 Jordan (nom) FPD p. 121, fn. 1;
1183 Jordano (abl) BoldonBuke p. 7;
1185x1186 Iordani (gen) PR-XXXVI p. 3,
Jordani (gen) ibid. p. 3;
1189 Jordani (gen) GASurv p. 213,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. p. 116;
1222 Jordani (gen) StPaulDom p. 49,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. p. 5;
1246 Jordanus (nom) PSS-II p. 6;
1279–80 Jordani (gen) WaHR-SK p. 45,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. p. 42;
1296 Jordani (gen) RCS-1 p. 95a,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. p. 94a;
1300 Jordanus (nom) ProcSuf-vol3 p. 248;
1340xc1450 Jurdanus (nom) CovGuild-1 p. 15
- Early Modern English
- ● 1566 Jordan StAnthonlin p. 18
- Estonia
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- Middle Low German
- ● 1378 Joerden BbRT p. 335
- France
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- Latin
- ● 1047 Jordanis (nom) CartNDSaintes II;
1146 Jordanus (nom) ibid. VIII;
1147 Jordani (gen) ibid. XXV;
1178x1182 Jordano (abl) ChartCaen2 3;
1179 Jordano (abl) clairvaux-12thc 181;
1180 Jordanus (nom) RotScaNor p. 16;
1239 Jordanus (nom) ChronMaillezais p. 162;
1273 Joardani (gen) RegToul-13thC p. 43,
Jordani (gen) ibid. p. 40;
1283–86 Jordani (gen) GasReg-A p. 227;
1310 Jordanus (nom) ibid. p. 217
- Old French
- ● 1292 Jordain (obl) HistHdVParis p. 113;
1296 Jordain paris1296 p. 16;
1313 Jordain Paris1313 p. 85,
Jourdain ibid. p. 3
- Middle French
- ● 1392 Jourdain MemBret-II col. 600;
1418 Jourdain DdB1418 p. 200,
HGParis p. 375;
1421 Jourdain favier 980;
1438 Jourdain ibid. 227
- Germany
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- Latin
- ● 1200 Iordanis (nom) hennes-vol1 5;
1238 Jordanus (nom) UrkMeck1 no. XXI;
1240 Jordanus (nom) ibid. no. XXVI;
1259 Jordanus (nom) CDL-1.1.1 XXXI;
1283 Iordani (gen) hennes-vol1 289,
Iordanus (nom) ibid. 289;
1284 Iordanus (nom) ibid. 294;
1298 Iordanus (nom) ibid. 335;
1317 Jordani (dat) VFBStralsund 50;
1394 Jordani (gen) SMM p. 191
- Hungary
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- Latin
- ● 1317 Iordani (gen) CDH-VIII-II IV,
Iordanus (nom) ibid. IV
- Ireland
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- Latin
- ● fin12thC Iordani (gen) MunDocIr III, p. 6,
Iordanus (nom) ibid. III, p. 4
- Italy
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- Latin
- ● 1235 Jordanus (nom) TirNot1 3;
1236 Jordani (gen) ibid. 6,
Jordano (abl) ibid. 9,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. 7,
Çordanus (nom) ibid. 9;
1253 Jordano (abl) MonRav-1 CLIX,
Jordanus (nom) ibid. CLIX;
1310 Jordanus (nom) MonRav-2 CCCL;
1449 Iordani (gen) VitAs2 IX;
1450 Iordanis (gen) ibid. III;
1464 Jordanus (nom) CUP-III-I CCXXXI;
1527 Jordanus (nom) Rome1527 p. 85
- ◑ 1161 Jordaninum (acc) Livi p. 41;
1348 Iordanillus (nom) INP 32
- Latvia
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- Latin
- ● 1287 Jordanus (nom) RigSB 492;
1289 Jordanus (nom) ibid. 510;
1297 Jordano (dat) ibid. 820
- The Netherlands
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- Latin
- ● 1284 Iordanus (nom) GesOIJ-1 p. 296;
1330 Iordanum (acc) ibid. p. 299
- Spain
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- Latin
- ● 1491 Jordani (gen) carbonell-I p. 59
- Sweden
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- Old Swedish
- ● 1383 Jordan SRA-vol2 no. 1900,
Jorden ibid. no. 1934;
1418 Jordhan (nom) SDHK no. 19090
- Switzerland
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- Latin
- ● 1195 Jordanus (nom) CartChart 2;
14thCx1478 Jordani (gen) Ob-SPVn (34),
Jordanus (nom) ibid. (14);
1432 Iordanus (nom) MHCG2 478
Cite as: J. Uckelman, S.L. Uckelman. "Jordan". In S.L. Uckelman, ed. The Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, Edition 2020, no. 1. http://dmnes.org/2020/1/name/Jordan.