Alphons (Latinized Alphonsus, Adelphonsus, or Adefonsus) is a male given name recorded from the 8th century (Alfonso I of Asturias, r. 739–757) in the Christian successor states of the Visigothic kingdom in the Iberian peninsula. In the later medieval period it became a standard name in the Hispanic and Portuguese royal families.[1]
 | |
| Gender | Male |
|---|---|
| Origin | |
| Word/name | Germanic languages |
| Meaning | "Noble brave" |
| Popularity | see popular names |
It is derived from a Gothic name, or a conflation of several Gothic names; from *Aþalfuns, composed of the elements aþal "noble" and funs "eager, brave, ready", and perhaps influenced by names such as *Alafuns, *Adefuns and *Hildefuns. It is recorded as Adefonsus in the 9th and 10th century,[2] and as Adelfonsus, Adelphonsus in the 10th to 11th. The reduced form Alfonso is recorded in the late 9th century, and the Portuguese form Afonso from the early 11th[3][4] and Anfós in Catalan from the 12th century until the 15th.[5]
Variants of the name include: Alonso (Spanish), Alfonso (Spanish and Italian), Alfons (Dutch, German, Catalan, Polish, Croatian and Scandinavian), Afonso (Portuguese and Galician), Alphonse, Alfonse (French and English), etc.
Middle Ages
editIberian royal families
edit- Asturias/Leon/Castile/Spain
- Alfonso I of Asturias (739–757)
- Alfonso II of Asturias (791–842)
- Alfonso III of León (866–910)
- Alfonso Fróilaz (925–926)
- Alfonso IV of León (925–931)
- Alfonso V of León (999–1028)
- Alfonso VI of León (1065–1109)
- Alfonso VII of León (1126–1157)
- Alfonso VIII of Castile (1158–1214)
- Alfonso IX of León (1188–1230)
- Alfonso X of Castile (1252–1284)
- Alfonso XI of Castile (1312–1350)
- Aragon & Naples
- Alfonso I of Aragon (1104–1134), known as el Batallador (The Battler)
- Alfonso II of Aragon (1162–1196)
- Alfonso III of Aragon (1285–1291)
- Alfonso IV of Aragon (1327–1336)
- Alfonso V of Aragon (1416–1458), also king of Naples and Sicily
- Alfonso II of Naples (1448–1495)
Other
edit- Alfonso Jordan (1103–1148)
- Alphonse, Count of Poitiers (1220–1271)
- Alfonso of Valladolid (c. 1270 – c. 1347), Jewish convert to Christianity, philosopher, and mathematician
- Alphonso, Earl of Chester (1273–1284), first son of Edward I of England, named after his godfather Alfonso X of Castile; died in childhood
- Juan Alfonso de Baena (c. 1375 – c. 1434), Castilian troubadour
Early modern period
edit- Alphonse Daudet, French novelist and historian
- Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara during the time of the War of the League of Cambrai
- Alphonse de Tonty, Baron de Paludy (c. 1659 – 1727)
- Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara from 1559 to 1597
- Alfonso II, Count of Provence, second son of Alfonso II of Aragon
- Alfonso III d'Este, Duke of Modena and Reggio (1628–44)
- Alfonso of Castile, Prince of Asturias, figurehead of rebelling magnates against his brother King Henry IV of Castile
- Alfonso of Hauteville, Prince of Capua
- Alphonsus Liguori, Roman Catholic theologian (1696–1787)
- Joseph-Alphonse Esménard (1770–1811)
Modern period
editIberian/Sicilian nobility
edit- Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta (1841–1934), duke of Calabria and head of the royal house of the Two Sicilies
- Alfonso XII of Spain (1857–1885) (ordinal numbering continues from the kings of Castile)
- Alfonso XIII of Spain (1886–1931)
- Infante Alfonso, Duke of Calabria, claimant to the title of the head of House of Bourbon Two Sicilies
- Alfonso of Spain, Prince of Asturias, heir-apparent of the throne of Spain 1907–31
- Prince Alfonso of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (1924–2003), Spanish playboy and businessman
- Infante Alfonso of Spain, younger brother of former King Juan Carlos of Spain
- Fadrique Alfonso of Castile, fifth illegitimate child of Alfonso XI of Castile
Alfons
edit- Alfons Almi (1904–1991), Finnish opera singer and administrator
- Alfons van Blaaderen (born 1963), Dutch physicist
- Alfons Geleyns (1887–1914), Belgian private
- Alfons Goppel (1905–1991), German politician
- Alfons Gorbach (1898–1972), Austrian politician
- Alfons Jēgers (1919–1999), Latvian football and hockey player
- Alfons Karpiński (1875–1961), Polish painter
- Alfons Rebane (1908–1976), Estonian military commander
- Alfons Rissberger (born 1948), German author
Alphonse
edit- Alphonse Gabriel Capone (1899–1947), Chicago gangster
Alfonso
edit- Alfonso Cuarón, Mexican cinematographer
- Alfonso Calderon (activist), Spanish born activist and advocate for gun control
- Alfonso Calderón (poet), Chilean poet and writer
- Alfonso Soriano, American baseball player
- Alfonso Lizarazo, Colombian host and politician
- Alfonso Mejia-Arias, Mexican musician, writer, social activist and politician of Roma origin (Gitano)
- Alfonso Ribeiro, Caribbean-American actor and game show host.
- Alfonso John Romero, American video-game designer, programmer, and developer
- Alfonso Pérez, Spanish football (soccer) striker
- Alfonso Oiterong, Palauan statesman, former Palau vice president 1981-1985
- Alicia Alfonso (born 1963), Uruguayan actress
- Giovanni Alfonso Borelli, Italian physiologist and physicist
- José Alfonso Belloso y Sánchez (1873–1938), Archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador
- Miguel Alfonso Pérez Aracil, Spanish football (soccer) midfielder
Alfonse
edit- Alfonse D'Amato (born 1937), United States Senator from New York
- Abraham Alfonse Albert Gallatin (1761–1849), Swiss-American politician
- Alphonse Mucha (1860–1939), Czech artist
Alphonso
edit- Alphonso Davies, Canadian soccer player born in Ghana, who grew up in Edmonton
As a surname
editAlphonse, Alphonso, Alfonso is occasionally seen as a surname derived from the given name, the latter descending from Asturias and Cantabria.[6]
- Celestino Alfonso (1916–1944), Spanish republican and volunteer fighter in the French resistance during World War II
- Roland Alphonso (1931–1998), Jamaican saxophonist
- Kristian Alfonso (born 1963), Puerto Rican American soap opera actress
- Michael Lee Alfonso (1965–2007), ring name "Mike Awesome", American professional wrestler
- Equis Alfonso, known as X-Alfonso, Cuban hip-hop and afro-rock musician
- Ozzie Alfonso, Cuban-American TV director and producer
- Sadda Vidda Rajapakse Palanga Pathira Ambakumarage Ranjan Leo Sylvester Alphonsu, Sri Lankan Sinhala politician, actor, singer, writer
Pseudonym
edit- Bill Alfonso, ring name of William Matthew Sierra, former professional wrestling referee & manager
Stage name
edit- Alfons, the stage name of Emmanuel Peterfalvi, a French comedian
Fictional characters
edit- Alphonso, protagonist in Alfonso und Estrella, an opera by Franz Schubert
- Don Alfonso, character in Mozart's opera Così fan tutte
- Alphonso MacKenzie, fictional character in the Marvel Universe
- Alfie Atkins, known as Alfons Åberg in Swedish, character created by Gunilla Bergström from Sweden
- Alfonzo Dominico Jones, a dog in the Australian television series SeaChange
- Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice, character in the comic strip Dick Tracy
- Alphonse and Gaston, French duo in a comic strip created by Frederick Burr Opper
- Alphonse Elric from Fullmetal Alchemist
- Alfons Heiderich from Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa
- Alphonse Mephisto, fictional character in the animated television series South Park
- Alphonso Ali, minor character in Bloom County
- Monsieur Alfonse, character in the BBC sitcom Allo 'Allo! played by the actor Kenneth Connor
- The name of a number of pets and the Patlabor of Noa Izumi from the anime Patlabor
- Oren Pierre Alfonso from Kamen Rider Gaim
- Alfonso "French" Sosa, a main character from The OA
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. I (9th ed.). 1878. pp. 615–619.
- ^ In the genitive, Adefonsi.
- ^ José Pedro Machado, Dicionário Onomástico Etimológico da Língua Portuguesa
- ^ E. Förstemann, Altdeutsches Namenbuch (1856:133, 145).
- ^ Diccionari d'Història de Catalunya; 62nd ed.; Barcelona; 1998; ISBN 84-297-3521-6; p. 25.
- ^ "Heraldica del apellido Alfonso".
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