Philippa is a feminine
given name
A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...
meaning "lover of
horses" or "
horses' friend". Common alternative spellings include ''
Filippa'' and ''Phillipa''. Less common is ''
Filipa'' and even ''Philippe'' (cf. the French spelling of ''
Philippa of Guelders'': ''Philippe de Gueldres''). It is the
feminine form of the masculine name ''
Philip
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...
''. It is composed of the
Greek elements ''philein'' (to love) and ''hippos'' (horse), and is derived from the name of
Alexander the Great's father, the ancient Greek king, ''
Philip II of Macedon'' (''aka'' ''Philippos'', ''Filippos'', and ''Pilipos''), who was an avid horse lover. The name is commonly shortened to the
nicknames ''
Pippa'', ''Pippy'', ''Pippita'', ''Pipka'', ''Pippulina'', and
Pip.
Notable people with the name Philippa include:
Pre-modern era
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Saint Philippa (died 220), Christian martyr and saint
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Philippa of Hainault (c.1310/15–1369), queen consort of Edward III of England
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Philippa Roet (c. 1346–c. 1387), wife of Geoffrey Chaucer
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Philippa, 5th Countess of Ulster (1355–1382), granddaughter of Edward III of England
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Philippa of Lancaster (1360–1415), English princess, consort queen of Portugal
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Philippa of England (1394–1430), daughter of King Henry IV of England, Queen of Sweden, Denmark and Norway
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Philippa of Coimbra
Infanta Philippa of Coimbra (1437–1497) was the youngest child of Infante Peter, Duke of Coimbra, and Isabella of Aragon, Countess of Urgell.
She became a nun in the Convent of Odivelas
Odivelas ( or ) is a city and a municipality in Lisbon me ...
(1437–1497), Portuguese noblewoman and nun
Modern era
*
Philippa Boyens
Philippa Jane Boyens (born 1962) is a New Zealand screenwriter and film producer who co-wrote the screenplay for Peter Jackson's films ''The Lord of the Rings'' series, ''King Kong'', ''The Lovely Bones'', and the three-part film ''The Ho ...
(born 1962), New Zealand screenwriter
*
Pip Courtney, Australian journalist and television presenter
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Philippa Cullen (1950–1975), Australian performance artist
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Philippa Dunne, Irish actress and writer
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Philippa Fawcett
Philippa Garrett Fawcett (4 April 1868 – 10 June 1948) was an English mathematician and educationalist. She was the first woman to obtain the top score in the Cambridge Mathematical Tripos exams. She taught at Newnham College, Cambridge, and at ...
(1868–1948), English mathematician and educationalist
*
Philippa Foot
Philippa Ruth Foot (; née Bosanquet; 3 October 1920 – 3 October 2010) was an English philosopher and one of the founders of contemporary virtue ethics, who was inspired by the ethics of Aristotle. Along with Judith Jarvis Thomson, she is cre ...
(1920–2010), British philosopher
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Philippa Forrester (born 1968), British television presenter and producer
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Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory (born 9 January 1954) is an English historical novelist who has been publishing since 1987. The best known of her works is ''The Other Boleyn Girl'' (2001), which in 2002 won the Romantic Novel of the Year Award from the Roman ...
(born 1954), British novelist
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Pippa Mann (born 1983), British racing car driver
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Pippa Middleton
Philippa Charlotte Matthews (née Middleton; born 6 September 1983) is an English socialite, author and columnist. She is the younger sister of Catherine, Princess of Wales.
Born in Reading and raised in Bucklebury, Berkshire, Middleton attende ...
(born 1983), English socialite, author, and sister of Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge
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Philippa Pearce (1920–2006), English children's author
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Philippa Schuyler (1931–1967), American pianist and child prodigy
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Phillipa Soo (born 1990), American actress/singer
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Pip Tomson (born 1977), English journalist and presenter
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Philippa Whipple (born 1966), British high court judge and barrister
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Philippa Whitford
Dr Philippa Whitford (born 24 December 1958) is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician and a breast surgeon. She was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Ayrshire in May 2015 and was re-elected in 2017 and 2019. She ...
(born 1958), Scottish politician and breast surgeon
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Philippa York (born 1958), Scottish journalist and former professional cyclist
See also
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Filipa
References
{{given name
English feminine given names
English-language feminine given names
Feminine given names
Greek feminine given names
Given names of Greek language origin