Malvina is a feminine given name derived from the

Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...

''Mala-mhìn'', meaning "smooth brow". It was popularized by the 18th century Scottish poet

James Macpherson James Macpherson (Gaelic: ''Seumas MacMhuirich'' or ''Seumas Mac a' Phearsain''; 27 October 1736 – 17 February 1796) was a Scottish writer, poet, literary collector and politician, known as the "translator" of the Ossian cycle of epic poem ...

. Other names popularised by Macpherson became popular in

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

on account of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, an admirer of Macpherson's Ossianic poetry, who was the godfather of several children of Jean Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, an officer of his who ruled Norway and Sweden in the early 19th century. The Argentinian name for the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

, ''Las Malvinas'', is not etymologically related to ''Malvina'', but is instead derived from the name of

St Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on the English Channel coast. The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Alli ...

, a seaport in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

Literary characters

* Malvina is the bride or lover of

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

in the ''

Ossian Ossian (; Irish Gaelic/Scottish Gaelic: ''Oisean'') is the narrator and purported author of a cycle of epic poems published by the Scottish poet James Macpherson, originally as ''Fingal'' (1761) and ''Temora'' (1763), and later combined under t ...

'' cycle of

. *

Thomas Campbell Thomas Campbell may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Thomas Campbell (poet) (1777–1844), Scottish poet * Thomas Campbell (sculptor) (1790–1858), Scottish sculptor * Thomas Campbell (visual artist) (born 1969), California-based visual artist ...

's poem '' Lord Ullin's Daughter'' was translated into the

Russian language Russian (russian: русский язык, russkij jazyk, link=no, ) is an East Slavic languages, East Slavic language mainly spoken in Russia. It is the First language, native language of the Russians, and belongs to the Indo-European langua ...

by the Romantic poet Vasiliy Zhukovsky. In Zhukovsky's translation, the title character, who is left unnamed in Campbell's original, is given the name Malvina, which the Russian poet likely borrowed from

's ''

''.

Vladimir Nabokov Vladimir Vladimirovich Nabokov (russian: link=no, Владимир Владимирович Набоков ; 2 July 1977), also known by the pen name Vladimir Sirin (), was a Russian-American novelist, poet, translator, and entomologist. Bo ...

has translated Zhukovsky's translation into English to demonstrate the changes that were made.Vladimir Nabokov (2008), ''Verses and Versions: Three Centuries of Russian Poetry'', Harcourt, Inc. Pages 52-57.

People

* Malvina Bolus (1906–1997), Canadian historian, art collector, editor of the Hudson's Bay Company magazine "The Beaver" *

Malvina Garrigues Eugénia Malvina Garrigues (later Malvina Schnorr von Carolsfeld; 7 December 18258 February 1904), was a Danish-born Portuguese operatic soprano. Early life and education Eugénia Malvina Garrigues was born a Portuguese citizen in Copenhagen ...

(Schnorr von Carolsfeld) (1825–1904), Danish-German operatic soprano *

Malvina Hoffman Malvina Cornell Hoffman (June 15, 1885July 10, 1966) was an American sculptor and author, well known for her life-size bronze sculptures of people. She also worked in plaster and marble. Hoffman created portrait busts of working-class people and ...

(1887–1966), American sculptor *

Malvina Longfellow Malvina Virginia Longfellow (March 30, 1889 – November 2, 1962) was an American stage and silent movie actress of the early 20th century.''Sunday Magazine, Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette, January 23, 1916, Page 34. Early life Born in the city of ...

(1889–1962), American stage and silent movie actress *

Malvina Major Dame Malvina Lorraine Major (born 28 January 1943) is a New Zealand opera soprano. Early life Major was born in Hamilton, New Zealand, into a large musical family. As a child she performed at various concerts, singing mainly country and wester ...

(born 1943), New Zealand singer *

Malvina Pastorino Malvina Pastorino (November 16, 1916 in Buenos Aires, Argentina – May 6, 1994 in Buenos Aires, Argentina) was an Argentine film actress. Career She appeared in more than 20 film and television productions between 1949 and 1988. She was m ...

(1916-1994), Argentine film actress *

Malvina Reynolds Malvina Reynolds (August 23, 1900 – March 17, 1978) was an American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist, best known for her songwriting, particularly the songs "Little Boxes", "What Have They Done to the Rain" and "Morningtown ...

(1900–1978), American folk/blues singer-songwriter and political activist *

Malvina Shanklin Harlan Malvina French Shanklin Harlan (1839–1916), informally known as "Mallie", was the wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan, the grandmother of Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan II, and the author of a 1915 memoir entitle ...

(1839–1916), American wife of a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, grandmother of another U.S. Supreme Court Justice, and author of a 1915 memoir * Malvina Bovi Van Overberghe (1900–1983), Belgian operatic soprano known as Vina Bovy *

Malvina Evalyn Wood Malvina Evalyn Wood (1893-1976), university librarian and college warden, was born in Guildford, Western Australia, daughter of a railway porter. Genealogy records show that the family's name was initially Shell, but was changed to Wood for un ...

(1893–1976), Australian university librarian and college warden

Fictional characters

*Malvina, the girl with blue hair – a doll-heroine from Aleksey Tolstoy's 1936 book ''The Golden Key, or the Adventures of

Buratino Buratino (Russian: Буратино) is the main character of Aleksey Nikolayevich Tolstoy's 1936 book ''The Golden Key, or the Adventures of Buratino'', which is based on the 1883 Italian novel ''The Adventures of Pinocchio'' by Carlo Collo ...

References

{{given name English given names invented by fiction writers English-language feminine given names Feminine given names Scottish feminine given names