Bertha is a female

Germanic name Germanic given names are traditionally dithematic; that is, they are formed from two elements, by joining a prefix and a suffix. For example, King Æþelred's name was derived from ', for "noble", and ', for "counsel". However, there are al ...

, from Old High German ''berhta'' meaning "bright one". It was usually a short form of

Anglo Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons happened wit ...

names ''Beorhtgifu'' meaning "bright gift" or ''Beorhtwynn'' meaning "bright joy". The name occurs as a

theonym A theonym (from Greek ''theos'' (Θεός), "god"'','' attached to ''onoma'' (ὄνομα), "name") is the proper name of a deity. Theonymy, the study of divine proper names, is a branch of onomastics (the study of the etymology, history, and u ...

, surviving as

Berchta or (English: Bertha), also commonly known as and other variations, was once known as a goddess in Pre-Christian Alpine traditions, Alpine paganism in the Upper German and Austrian regions of the Alps. Her name may mean "the bright one" ( goh, ...

, a figure in

Alpine folklore The central and eastern Alps of Europe are rich in folklore traditions dating back to pre-Christian times, with surviving elements originating from Germanic, Gaulish (Gallo-Roman), Slavic ( Carantanian) and Raetian culture. Survival through t ...

connected to the

Wild Hunt The Wild Hunt is a folklore motif (Motif E501 in Stith Thompson's Motif-Index of Folk-Literature) that occurs in the folklore of various northern European cultures. Wild Hunts typically involve a chase led by a mythological figure escorted by ...

, probably an epithet of ''*

Frijjō ''*Frijjō'' ("Frigg-Frija") is the reconstructed name or epithet of a hypothetical Common Germanic love goddess, the most prominent female member of the ''* Ansiwiz'' (gods), and often identified as the spouse of the chief god, *''Wōdanaz'' ('' ...

'' in origin. ''Bertha'' appears as a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...

given name from as early as the 6th century. The monothematic ''Bertha'' as a given name may, however, not originate with the theonym but rather as a short form of dithematic given names including the "bright" element. This is notably the case with the mother of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Holy ...

, Bertrada (properly ''berht-rada'' "bright counsel") called "Bertha Broadfoot." Carolingian uses of the name ''Bertha'', as in the case of

Bertha, daughter of Charlemagne Bertha (c. 780 – after 11 March 824) was the seventh child and third daughter of Charlemagne, King of the Franks, by his second wife, Hildegard of the Vinzgau. Life Bertha was raised with her brothers and sisters in the royal household of Ch ...

and

Bertha, daughter of Lothair II Bertha (born between 863 and 868 – March 925 in Lucca) was countess of Arles by marriage to Theobald of Arles, and margravine of Tuscany by marriage to Adalbert II of Tuscany. She served as regent of Lucca and Tuscany from 915 until 916 durin ...

, are in this tradition. In modern times, the name is associated with an unusually large example of a class of objects. Many large machines are nicknamed Bertha for the World War I howitzer known as Big Bertha. Women named Bertha include: * Saint

Bertha of Kent Saint Bertha or Saint Aldeberge (c. 565 – d. in or after 601) was the queen of Kent whose influence led to the Christianization of Anglo-Saxon England. She was canonized as a saint for her role in its establishment during that period of Eng ...

(539 – c. 612), Queen of Kent * Saint

Bertha of Val d'Or Bertha of Val d'Or (birth unknown, death c. 690), was an abbess, virgin, and martyr, and is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church as a saint. Her husband was Gombert, Lord of Champenois, who was a nobleman and member of the royal family of Franc ...

(d. c. 690), abbess * Saint Bertha of Artois (mid-7th century – 4 July 725), abbess, daughter of Count Rigobert and Ursana *

Bertrada of Laon Bertrada of Laon (born between 710 and 727 – 12 July 783), also known as Bertrada the Younger or Bertha Broadfoot (cf. Latin: ''Regina pede aucae'' i.e. the queen with the goose-foot), was a Frankish queen. She was the wife of Pepin the Short and ...

(also called Bertha with the big feet) (720–783), Frankish queen * Saint

Bertha of Bingen Saint Bertha of Bingen (German: ''Heilige Berta'', died ca. 757) was the mother of Rupert of Bingen. Her biography was written, and subsequently her cult popularized, by Hildegard of Bingen, who lived in the same region, about four hundred years ...

(fl. c. 757), mother of Saint Rupert of Bingen *

(c. 780 – after 11 March 824) *

(863–925) * Blessed

Bertha de Bardi Blessed Bertha de Bardi (died 24 March 1163) was born in Florence. She was the daughter of Lothario di Ugo, Count of Vernio, and is ordinarily called Bertha de Bardi, but the name should probably be d'Alberti. She joined the order of Vallombrosa, ...

, Florence; (died 24 March 1163) *

Bertha, Duchess of Brittany Bertha of Cornouaille (fl. 1125–56), also known as Bertha of Brittany ( br, Berthe Breizh), was the Duchess of Brittany between 1148 until her death and Dowager Countess of Richmond. Bertha was the elder daughter of Conan III of Brittany by Mau ...

(c. 1114 – 1156) *

Bertha of Burgundy Bertha of Burgundy (964 – 16 January 1010) was Queen of the Franks as the second wife of King Robert II. Bertha was the daughter of King Conrad of BurgundyStefan Weinfurter, ''The Salian Century: Main Currents in an Age of Transition'', transl ...

(952, 964 or 967 – 1010, 16 January 1016, or 1035), queen of France *

Bertha of Hereford Bertha of Hereford, also known as Bertha de Pitres (born c. 1130), was the daughter of Miles de Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford, and a wealthy heiress, Sibyl de Neufmarché. She was the wife of William de Braose, 3rd Lord of Bramber to whom she ...

(born c. 1130), heiress *

Bertha of Holland Bertha of Holland ( 1055 – 15 October 1094), also known as Berthe or Bertha of Frisia and erroneously as Berta or Bertrada, was Queen of France from 1072 until 1092, as the first wife of King Philip I of France. Bertha's marriage to the king in ...

(c. 1055 – 1093), queen of France *

Bertha of Putelendorf Bertha von Putelendorf (died 1190) was the daughter of Count Palatine Friedrich von Putelendorf in Saxony. She married Berthold I, Count of Henneberg (died 1157), and had two surviving children: *Irmingard of Henneberg (a daughter, died 15 July 1 ...

(died 1190), Saxon noble *

Bertha of Savoy Bertha of Savoy (21 September 1051 – 27 December 1087), also called Bertha of Turin, was Queen of Germany from 1066 and Holy Roman Empress from 1084 until 1087 as the first wife of Emperor Henry IV. Life Bertha of Savoy was a daughter of ...

(1051–1087) *

Bertha of Sulzbach Bertha of Sulzbach (1110s – August 29, 1159) was a Byzantine Empress by marriage to Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos. Life She was born in Sulzbach, a daughter of Berengar II, Count of Sulzbach (c. 1080 – 3 December 1125) and his second sp ...

(1110–1159), Byzantine empress *

Bertha of Swabia Bertha of Swabia (french: Berthe; german: Berta; AD – after January 2, 966), a member of the Alemannic Hunfriding dynasty, was queen of Burgundy from 922 until 937 and queen of Italy from 922 until 926, by her marriage with King Rudolph II. She ...

(c. 907 – 966), queen of Burgundy *

(died c. 690), a Christian saint *

Bertha Benz Bertha Benz (; ; 3 May 1849 – 5 May 1944) was a German automotive pioneer and inventor. She was the business partner and wife of automobile inventor Carl Benz. On 5 August 1888, she was the first person to drive an internal-combustion-engined a ...

(1849–1944), wife of automobile inventor Karl Benz and the first person in history to drive an automobile over long distance. *

Bertha Southey Brammall Bertha Southey Brammall (10 December 1878 – 10 February 1957) was an Australian writer. A direct descendant of English Poet Laureate Robert Southey, Brammall wrote material for children's radio programs as well as poems, novels and short stori ...

(1878–1957), Australian writer *

Bertha Brainard Bertha Brainard (June 16, 1890 – June 11, 1946), known to her friends as Betty, was a pioneering NBC executive responsible for setting trends in network broadcasting. Life and career She was born and raised in South Orange, New Jersey, the daug ...

(1890–1946), pioneering television executive *

Bertha Coombs Bertha Coombs (born December 28, 1961) is a reporter for CNBC, based at the Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square. She covers business and financial news stories. Coombs attended The Park School in Brookline, Massachusetts, Milton Academy in Milton ...

(born 1961), reporter *

Bertha Díaz Julia Berta Díaz Hernández (October 1, 1936 – November 20, 2019), known as Berta Díaz, was a sprinter from Cuba, who also competed in the long jump and the hurdling events during her career. She represented her native country at two co ...

(1936–2019), Cuban track and field athlete *

Bertha Fowler Bertha Fowler (June 25, 1866 - May 27, 1952) was an American educator, as well as a Methodist Episcopal Church preacher and deaconess. In 1901, she established the Woman's Home Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church, which united with ...

(1866-1952), American educator, preacher, deaconess * Bertha Gifford (1871-1951), American serial killer *

Bertha Lund Glaeser Bertha Lund Glaeser (, Lund; September 28, 1862 – May 5, 1939) was an American physician. She served as Professor of Pediatrics at the Woman's Medical College of Cincinnati. Early life and education Bertha Lund was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, Se ...

(1862-1939), American physician *

Bertha Gxowa Bertha Gxowa (née Mashaba November 26, 1934 - November 19, 2010) was an anti-apartheid and women's rights activist and trade unionist in South Africa. Biography Gxowa was born in Germiston. She first started working as an office assistant in th ...

(1934-2010), South African anti-apartheid activist, trade unionist, and women's rights activist *

Bertha Hart Bertha Irene Hart was an American mathematician. She had a Master of Arts degree from Cornell University, and was at one point an associate professor of mathematics for Western Maryland College. Affiliations In 1946 she was elected to “ordinary ...

, American mathematician *

Bertha "Chippie" Hill Bertha "Chippie" Hill (March 15, 1905 – May 7, 1950), was an American blues and vaudeville singer and dancer, best known for her recordings with Louis Armstrong. Career Hill was born in Charleston, South Carolina, one of sixteen childre ...

(1905–1950), American blues and vaudeville singer and dancer *

Bertha von Hillern Bertha von Hillern (4 August 1853, Trier, Prussian Rhineland – 19 September 1939, Staunton, Virginia) was a German-American athlete and artist. Biography At the age of twelve, Von Hillern began to study the science of Pedestrianism, and during ...

(1853–1939), American athlete and painter *

Bertha Hosang Mah Bertha Hosang Mah (November 18, 1896 – 1959) was a Canadian student, the first Chinese woman to graduate from a Canadian university. Early life Hosang was born in Lillooet, British Columbia,

(1896 – 1959), Canadian student *

Bertha Kalich Bertha Kalich (also spelled Kalish, born Beylke Kalakh; 17 May 1874 – 18 April 1939) was a Ukrainian-Jewish-American actress. Though she was well-established as an entertainer in Eastern Europe, she is best remembered as one of the several ...

(1874–1939), Jewish actress *

Bertha Krupp Bertha Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach (29 March 1886 – 21 September 1957) was a member of the Krupp family, Germany's leading industrial dynasty of the 19th and 20th centuries. As the elder child and heir of Friedrich Alfred Krupp she was the ...

(1886–1957), sole proprietor of the Krupp industrial empire from 1902 to 1943 *

Bertha Knight Landes Bertha Ethel Knight Landes (October 19, 1868, – November 29, 1943) was the first female mayor of a major American city, serving as mayor of Seattle, Washington from 1926 to 1928. After years of civic activism, primarily with women's organiz ...

(1868–1943), first female mayor of a major American city (Seattle, Washington) *

Bertha Lewis Bertha Amy Lewis (12 May 1887 – 8 May 1931) was an English opera singer and actress primarily known for her work as principal contralto in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. Life and career Early life ...

(1887–1931), English opera singer and actress *

Bertha Mahony Bertha Mahony (1882–1969), also known as Bertha Mahony Miller, is considered a figurehead of the children's literature movement. She created one of the first children's bookstores in Boston, Massachusetts. Mahony was also the founder of the ''Ho ...

(1882–1969), publisher of children's literature *

Bertha Palmer Bertha Matilde Palmer (; May 22, 1849 – May 5, 1918) was an American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist. Early life Born as Bertha Matilde Honoré in Louisville, Kentucky, her father was businessman Henry Hamilton Honoré. Known wit ...

(1849–1918), American businesswoman, socialite, and philanthropist *

Bertha Pappenheim Bertha Pappenheim (27 February 1859 – 28 May 1936) was an Austrian-Jewish feminist, a social pioneer, and the founder of the Jewish Women's Association (''). Under the pseudonym Anna O., she was also one of Josef Breuer's best-documented pat ...

(1859–1936), Austrian-Jewish feminist and social pioneer * Bertha Lee Pate (1903–1975), American blues vocalist *

Bertha Quinn Bertha Quinn (1873–1951) was a British suffragette and socialist, from Leeds, who was arrested five times and once went to prison, becoming one of the first Catholic suffragette prisoners to be force-fed after going on hunger strike. Quinn becam ...

(1873–1951), British suffragette and socialist, recipient of Papal Medal * Bertha Ronge (1818–1863), Anglo-German kindergarten activist * Bertha Runkle (1879–1958), American novelist and playwright *

Bertha Sánchez Bertha Oliva Sánchez Rivera (born November 4, 1978) is a female long-distance runner from Colombia, who won several medals on continental level from the mid-1990s on. Career She has won twice at the South American Cross Country Championships ...

(born 1978), Colombian long-distance runner * Bertha Schrader (1845-1920), German painter, lithographer, and woodblock print-maker *

Bertha von Suttner Bertha Sophie Felicitas Freifrau von Suttner (; ; 9 June 184321 June 1914) was an Austrian-Bohemian pacifist and novelist. In 1905, she became the second female Nobel laureate (after Marie Curie in 1903), the first woman to be awarded the Nobel ...

(1843–1914), Austrian novelist and pacifist *

Bertha Swirles Bertha Swirles, Lady Jeffreys (22 May 1903 – 18 December 1999) was an English physicist, academic and scientific author who carried out research on quantum theory in its early days. She was associated with Girton College, University of Camb ...

(1903–1999), English physicist and applied mathematician * Bertha Tammelin, (1836–1915), Swedish musician, composer and singer *

Bertha Teague Bertha F. Teague (September 17, 1906 – June 13, 1991) was an American basketball coach, born in Carthage, Missouri, USA. She coached the Byng High School girls' team in Byng, Oklahoma (near Ada, Oklahoma) for 42 years (from 1927 to 1969) with a c ...

(1906–1991), Hall of Fame basketball coach *

Bertha Townsend Bertha Louise Townsend Toulmin (née Townsend; March 7, 1869 – May 12, 1909) was a female tennis player from the United States. She is best remembered for being the first repeating women's singles champion at the U.S. Championships (now: U.S. ...

(1869–1909), American tennis player * Bertha L. Turner (1867–1938), American caterer, cookbook author, and community leader *

Bertha Valerius Aurora Valeria Albertina Valerius, known as Bertha (21 January 1824, Stockholm – 24 March 1895, Stockholm), was a Swedish photographer and painter.''Svenskt konstnärslexikon'', Part V, pg. 572, Allhems Förlag AB, 1953, Malmö. Biography Bert ...

(1824–1895), Swedish photographer * Bertha Yerex Whitman (1892–1984), American architect *

Bertha Wehnert-Beckmann Bertha Wehnert-Beckmann (25 January 1815 – 6 December 1901) was a German photographer. She appears to have been Germany's first professional female photographer, and was possibly also the first professional female photographer in the world, bein ...

(1815–1901), German photographer *

Bertha Wilson Bertha Wernham Wilson (September 18, 1923April 28, 2007) was a Canadian jurist and the first female puisne justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. Before her ascension to Canada's highest court, she was the first female associate and partner at ...

(1923–2007), first female Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada *

Bertha M. Wilson Bertha M. Wilson (pen name, B. M. Wilson; August 14, 1874 – 1936) was an American dramatist, critic, and dramatic actress, who earned a reputation throughout the Central United States. She leased some of her monologues, sketches, drills, and p ...

(1874–1936), American dramatist, critic, actress *

Bertha Zück Bertha (''Anna Barbara'') Zück, also called ''Babette'' (2 February 1797 – 20 February 1868 at Stockholm Palacesvar.ra.se, SCB döda, Stockholms katolskaAnna Barbara Zück/ref>), was the German favourite, Lady's maid and treasurer of Queen Jose ...

(1797–1868), German-Swedish royal treasurer

Other uses

Bertha (disambiguation) Bertha is a female given name. It can also refer to: Places ;In the United States * Bertha, Minnesota, a city * Bertha, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Bertha, Nebraska, an unincorporated community * Bertha, Virginia, an unincorpora ...

* Big Bertha (disambiguation)

External links

*http://www.behindthename.com/name/bertha {{given name, Bertha, nocat Given names English feminine given names Feminine given names Surnames German feminine given names de:Bertha it:Bertha nl:Bertha pt:Bertha ru:Берта