This page is historical. Follow this link for the current version.
Dictionary of Medieval Names
from European Sources

Rose f. Old Saxon hrōth, Old High German hruod 'fame' + Old High German heit 'kind, sort'. Later forms were influenced by Latin rosa 'rose'.

The name of a 13th C Italian saint.

The vernacular English form Rose is witnessed in 1379 in the relational bynames Rosedoghter (WRYPT1 p. 37).

England
Latin
1222 Roeisia (nom) StPaulDom p. 29, Roesia (nom) ibid. p. 30; 1246 Roisiam (acc) PSS-II p. 6; 1279–80 Rosa (nom) WaHR-SK p. 33; 1340xc1450 Rosa (nom) CovGuild-1 p. 12; 1379 Rosa (nom) WRYPT1 p. 15; 1381 Roes (nom) Suffolk1381 p. 104, Rosa (nom) ibid. p. 71, Rose (gen) ibid. p. 108, Rosea (nom) ibid. p. 94, Rosia (nom) ibid. p. 77, Roys (nom) ibid. p. 91; 1560 Rose (nom) StMartF p. 60; 1561/2 Rosa (nom) RegSoABap p. 5; 1561 Rosa (nom) RegSoAMar p. 2; 1562 Rosa (nom) RegSoABap p. 6; 1563 Rosa (nom) ibid. p. 7, Rose (nom) ibid. p. 8; 1564/5 Rose (nom) ibid. p. 10; 1566 Rosa (nom) ibid. p. 12; 1567 Rosæ (gen) ibid. p. 13; 1568 Rosa (nom) ibid. p. 14; 1593 Rose (nom) RegSoAMar p. 16
Early Modern English
1520 Rose SaxhamSf p. 128; 1529 Rose CovGuild-2 p. 85; 1530 Rose LIWill-III p. 38; 1540 Rose StAnthonlin p. 2, StNick-Sf p. 1; 1551 Rose BarnstapleBap p. 6; 1553 Ros ibid. p. 8; 1557 Rose ibid. p. 9; 1558 Rose SaxhamSf p. 130; 1559 Rose HAmar-vol9 p. 67; 1562 Rose BarnstapleBap p. 12; 1563 Rose StAnthonlin p. 15; 1565 Rosse ibid. p. 17; 1568 Rose SaxhamSf p. 2; 1569 Rose RegSoABap p. 15; 1572 Rose HAmar-vol9 p. 3, RegSoABap p. 18, StAnthonlin p. 22; 1573 Rose ibid. p. 23; 1574/5 Rose HAmar-vol9 p. 3; 1578 Rose SaxhamSf p. 39; 1581 Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 6; 1582 Rose ibid. p. 8, OrpingtonKe p. 6, RegSoAMar p. 11; 1584 Roase BEmar-vol2 p. 30, Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 10; 1584/5 Rose RegBath p. 6; 1585 Rose RegSoAMar p. 12; 1586/7 Rose RegBath p. 7; 1587 Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 14; 1588 Rose RegBath p. 8, StAnthonlin p. 33; 1589 Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 17, StAnthonlin p. 34; 1590 Rose ibid. p. 34; 1591 Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 22, HAmar-vol9 p. 116, RegSoAMar p. 15; 1594/5 Rose BEmar-vol1 p. 16; 1594 Rose DEmar-vol2 p. 28, HAmar-vol9 p. 3; 1597 Rose RegBisham p. 21
1573 Rosye COmar-vol5 p. 84
Walloon
1582 Rose RWC p. 563
France
Latin
c1175–1180 Rohais (gen) ChartCaen2 p. 65; 1178x1182 Rohaisia (nom) ibid. 3; 1180 Rohais (abl) RotScaNor p. 8; 1268 Rohesie (gen) NDParisII 2-V; 1301 Rose (gen) MemPic-vol17 p. 204
Old French
1307 Rose (obl) ArchReimsII1 LX; 1313 Roisse Paris1313 p. 125, Rose ibid. p. 104
Middle French
1565 Roze RegPCC-1 p. 145
Italy
Latin
1265x1339 Rosa (nom) BBC-Berg 577; 1366 Rosam (acc) Livi 23; 1490 Rose (gen) VitAs2 III; 1522x1532 Rosa (nom) DSF p. 51, 7
1521 Rosata (nom) VitAs2 IV; 1522x1532 Rosata (nom) DSF p. 51, 8, Rosella (nom) ibid. p. 53, 37
Spain
Catalan
1510 Rosa valencia1510 3851
Cite as: A. Brown, S.L. Uckelman. "Rose". In S.L. Uckelman, ed. The Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, Edition 2021, no. 1. http://dmnes.org/2021/1/name/Rose.