Brunhilde (given name)

GenderFemale

Word/nameGermanic

Meaning"battle armor"

Related namesBrunhild, Brünhild, Brunehilde, Brunhilda, Brunhilde, Brunilda, Brünnhilde, Brynhild, Brynhilda, Brynhildr, and Brynhildur^[1]

Brunhilde

Brunhilde by Árpád Basch, 1900.
Gender	Female
Origin
Word/name	Germanic
Meaning	"battle armor"
Other names
Related names	Brunhild, Brünhild, Brunehilde, Brunhilda, Brunhilde, Brunilda, Brünnhilde, Brynhild, Brynhilda, Brynhildr, and Brynhildur[1]

Brunhilde is a German feminine given name, derived from a combination of the Germanic word elements brun, or armor, and hild, or battle. The Valkyrie Brunhild is a heroine of Germanic heroic legend.^[2]

Variants in regular use include the Albanian, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish Brunilda and Brunilde; the Norwegian Brynhild; and the Icelandic Brynhildur.

Brunhilde was in regular use for girls in Germany from the late 19th century through the 1960s, a time period when romantic German nationalism was in vogue and the names of idealized heroines such as Brunhild from Germanic heroic legend became more popular.^[3] Brünhild was also a character in Richard Wagner's four-part opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen, which became popular world-wide in the late 1800s.