![]() Illustration by Ernest Howard Shepard from Winnie-the-Pooh (1926), by A A Milne. The name Winnie has associations with the character from the children’s book. | |
Pronunciation | (/ˈwɪniː/) |
---|---|
Gender | Unisex |
Origin | |
Word/name | Welsh (Wales) |
Meaning | fair one white and smooth soft happiness fair and pure |
Other names | |
Related names | Winne |
Winnie or Winny (/ˈwɪniː/ WIN-ee) is both a male and a female given name of Welsh origin, a short form (hypocorism) of Edwina, Winona, Winifred or Winnifred, Winter, Gwendolyn, Guinevere (Welsh), Gwyneth (Welsh), and Wynne (Welsh). The name's meaning is: fair one, white and smooth, soft, happiness, or fair and pure. The popularity of the name Winnie steadily declined among American women in the 20th century, but in the 1990 US Census, still ranked 699th of 4276.[1] Some commentators note that the name has risen in use for girls along with other names of a similar style that all exude cuteness and promote enjoyment, perhaps in reaction to serious times.[2]
It is also a male name from Cambodia (meaning bright),[3] or a short form of the English given name Winston. It can derive from many other names ending in -win such as Edwin, Darwin, etc., or be a nickname for the Welsh name Wyn.