Wendell

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A male personal name of Old English origin, historically associated with the Vandal people and commonly used throughout English-speaking cultures
2. A man's given name derived from Germanic roots, traditionally bestowed in honor or family custom and borne by many notable historical and contemporary figures
3. A masculine forename of Germanic descent, established as a standard English name used across generations and diverse English-speaking communities

Etymology: The name "Wendell" is a short form of older Germanic compound names that begin with "Wendel-", the name of the Wends, a group of Slavic peoples who lived east of the Elbe in what is now eastern Germany and Poland. The Germanic personal names built on this element were common in medieval German-speaking lands, and the single syllable that the Germans used for the people was carried into the names themselves. Over time, the longer forms were shortened to a form that could stand alone as a given name. Because it began as a clipped version of a longer compound, "Wendell" never carried a meaning of its own in the way that many personal names do; its significance lies entirely in the ethnic name it preserves. Its use as a surname later arose from the given name, so the same spelling now serves both as a first name and a family name in English-speaking countries.