The name Basil (royal, kingly) comes from the male Greek name Vassilios (Greek: Βασίλειος, female version Bασιλεία), which first appeared during the Hellenistic period. It is derived from "basileus" (Greek: βασιλεύς), a Greek word of pre-Hellenic origin, meaning "king", from which words such as basilica and basilisk (via Latin) as well as the eponymous herb basil (via Old French) derive, and the name of the Italian region Basilicata, which had been long under the rule of the Byzantine Emperor (also called basileus).

Basil
Pronunciation/ˈbæzəl/ BAZ-əl, /ˈbɑːsəl/ BAH-səl
GenderMale and Female
Origin
Word/nameGreek, Arabic
Meaning"royal, kingly, brave, valiant, chivalrous" in Greek; "brave, fearless, intrepid" in Arabic

It was brought to England by the Crusaders, having been common in the eastern Mediterranean. It is more often used in Britain and Europe than in the United States. It is also the name of a common herb.

In Arabic, Bas(s)el (باسل, bāsil) is a name for boys and girls that means "brave, fearless, intrepid".[1]

Different derived names in different languages include Barsegh in Armenian; Basile in French; Basilius in German; Basilio in Italian and Spanish; Basílio in Portuguese; Basileo in Galician; Vasyl in Ukraine; Vasile in Romanian; Vasil in Bulgarian; Vasilije in Serbian; Vasily in Russian; Bazil, Bazsó, Vászoly and Vazul in Hungarian.

Basil may refer to the following people:

Rulers edit

Generals edit

Religious figures edit

  • Basil of Caesarea (330–379), also known as Saint Basil the Great, a 4th-century bishop of Caesarea
  • Basil the Elder, father of Basil the Great and saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church
  • Basil of Ancyra (died 362), a 4th-century martyr
  • Basil of Amasea, a fourth-century Christian bishop and martyr
  • Basil I of Bulgaria, the first Patriarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (c. 1186 – c. 1232) after restoring Tarnovo Patriarchate
  • Basil II of Bulgaria, Patriarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (c. 1246 – c. 1263)
  • Basil III of Bulgaria, Patriarch of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church (c. 1254–1263)
  • Basil Fool for Christ (born 1468 or 1469, died 1552 or 1557), a Russian saint
  • Basil of Ostrog (1610–1671), bishop and saint of the Eastern Orthodox Church
  • Basil the Physician (died 1118), Bogomil leader burned at the stake as a heretic
  • Basil of Seleucia (died probably between 458 and 460), a metropolitan bishop of Seleucia ad Calycadnum
  • Basil the Confessor (died 750), Eastern Orthodox saint
  • Basil Hopko (1904–1976), bishop of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church and martyr
  • Basil Hume (1923–1999), English Roman Catholic cardinal and Archbishop of Westminster
  • Basil Moreau (1799–1873), French Roman Catholic priest who founded the Congregation of Holy Cross and was beatified
variant Baselios
  • Baselios I bar Baldoyo, Maphrian of the East (828–830) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios II, Maphrian of the East (848–868) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios III, Maphrian of the East (936–960) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios IV of Tagrit, Maphrian of the East (1046–1069) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Behnam Hadliyo (died 1454), Maphrian of the East (1404–1412), later Ignatius Behnam Hadliyo, Patriarch of Antioch, and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1445 until his death in 1454
  • Baselios Philoxenus, Maphrian of the East (1471–1487) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Abraham, Maphrian of the East (1496–1508) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Solomon (died 1518), Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church, from 1509 until his death in 1518
  • Baselios Blias, Maphrian of the East (1518–1523) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios, Maphrian of Mosul, a great number of maphrians all called Baselios (See List of maphrians#Maphrians of Mosul (1533–1860)
  • Baselios Lazarus III (died 1713), Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church, from 1709 until his death in 1713.
  • Baselios Sakralla III of Aleppo (died 1764), Maphriyano (Catholicos) of the Syriac Orthodox Church of the East from 1748–1760. He came to India in 1751 and was buried there
  • Baselios Cleemis (born 1959), Cardinal, Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
  • Baselios Paulose I (1836–1913), Catholicos of the East, the First Catholicos of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church from 1912 to 1913
  • Baselios Paulose II (1914–1996), Catholicos of India of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church from 1975 to 1996
  • Baselios Mar Thoma Paulose II (1946–2021), Catholicos of the East of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church from 2010
  • Baselios Thomas I (born 1929), Catholicos of India, Maphrian, head of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church in India
  • Baselios Yeldo (1593–1685), a Saint, Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1678 until his resignation in 1684
  • Cyril Baselios (1935–2007), Maphrian, the first Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
variant Basilides
  • Basilides (2nd century AD), Egyptian Gnostic religious teacher

Given name edit

variant Bassel

Surname edit

  • Steve Basil (1893–1962), American baseball umpire
  • Toni Basil (born 1943), American musician, video artist, actress, and choreographer
  • Richard Basil (born 1967), American former college football coach
variant Bacile
variant Baseley
variant Basile
variant Basilio
variant Basilius
  • Basilius is a Greek nobility title and names bearing this title are excluded here
  • István Basilius (1549–1581), Hungarian Unitarian minister
variant Basilone
  • John Basilone (1916–1945), American soldier and U.S. Marine, recipient of the Medal of Honor
variant Bassil
  • Gebran Bassil (born 1970), Lebanese politician
  • Philip S. Bassil (born 1976) Lebanese-Canadian Investment Banker and financier
  • Ray Bassil (born 1988), Lebanese athlete
variant Bazeley
variant Bazell
variant Bazil
variant Bazley
variant Pasi
variant Vasil (excluding Vasil)
variant Vasilchenko

see Vasilchenko

variant Vasile
variant Vasili
variant Vasilj
variant Vasko (excluding Vaskó and Vaško)
variant Vasović
variant Vassili
variant Wasilewski

Fictional characters edit

References edit

  1. ^ Wehr, Hans (1979). Cowan, J. Milton (ed.). A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic. p. 73.