Ethel (also æthel) is an Old English word meaning "noble", today often used as a feminine given name. Etymology and historic usage The word means æthel "noble". It is frequently attested as the first element in Anglo-Saxon names, both masculine and feminine, e.g. Æthelhard, Æthelred, Æthelwulf; Æthelburg, Æthelflæd, Æthelthryth (Audrey). It corresponds to the Adel- and Edel- in continental names, such as Adolf (Æthelwulf), Albert (Adalbert), Adelheid (Adelaide), Edeltraut and Edelgard. Some of the feminine Anglo-Saxon names in Æthel- survived into the modern period (e.g. Etheldred Benett 1776–1845). Ethel was in origin used as a familiar form of such names, but it began to be used as a feminine given name in its own right beginning in the mid-19th century, gaining popularity due to characters so named in novels by W. M. Thackeray (The Newcomes – 1855) and Charlotte Mary Yonge (The Daisy Chain whose heroine Ethel's full name is Etheldred – 1856); the actress Ethel Barrymore – born 1879 – was named after The Newcomes character. Notes & Queries published correspondence about the name Ethel in 1872 because it was in fashion. The feminine name's popularity peaked in the 1890s. In the United States, it was the 7th most commonly given name for baby girls in the year 1894. Its use gradually declined during the 20th century, falling below rank 100 by 1940, and below rank 1000 in 1976. Ethel was also occasionally used as a masculine given name during the 1880s to 1910s, but never with any frequency (never rising above rank 400, or 0.02% in popularity). People Ethel D. Allen (1929–1981), the first African-American woman to serve on Philadelphia City Council Ethel Anderson (1883–1958), Australian poet, essayist, novelist and painter Ethel Percy Andrus (1884–1967), educator and founder of AARP Ethel Armes (1876–1945), American journalist and historian Ethel Armitage (1873–1957), British archer and 1908 Olympic competitor Ethel Ayler (1934–2018), American stage and film actress Ethel Azama (1934–1984), American jazz and popular singer Ethel Barrymore (1879–1959), American stage and screen actress Ethel Bentham (1861–1931), English doctor, politician and suffragette Ethel Blondin-Andrew (born 1951), Canadian politician and parliamentarian Ethel Cain (born 1998), American singer-songwriter Ethel Catherwood (1908–1987), Canadian high jump gold medalist in the 1928 Olympics Ethel Clay Price (1874–1943), American nurse and socialite Ethel Clayton (1882–1966), American silent-film actress Ethel Harriet Comyns-Lewer (1861–1946), British ornithologist and periodical editor, publisher and owner Ethel Dovey (1882–1920), American stage actress and singer