Valerie is generally a feminine given name, derived directly from the French ''Valérie'' (a female-only name). Valéry or Valery is a masculine given name in parts of Europe (particularly in France and Russia), as well as a common surname in

Francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...

countries. Another, much rarer, French masculine form can be Valère. Both feminine and masculine forms have derivatives in many European languages and are especially common in Russian and other Eastern European languages. However, the masculine form is not always a cognate of the feminine: it can have a distinct etymology.

Etymology

Romance

The name is generally of Romance origins. The Latin clan name, ''Valerius'', is masculine and denotes strength, health or boldness. ''Valeria'' is simply the feminine form of this. Both masculine and feminine given names are derived via French into other languages. In Catholic Europe, given names always related the individual to a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

, so the popularity of a name often reflected the importance of the cult of a saint. There were several important saints who bore the name and were widely venerated in the Middle Ages, as well as more locally in recent times.

St Valerie of Limoges ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

(French ''Sainte Valérie de Limoges'') probably exercised the greatest influence in spreading the name. Her cult was practised on the very important Way of St James and, as a cephalophore, she became a favourite subject for the early modern ceramics industry. The majority of the variant spellings are of recent, mainly 20th century, origin, with fashions often following the forms adopted in popular songs.

Germanic

The modern masculine given name Valéry is ambiguous. While generally a cognate of Valérie, it can also be development of, or synonym for, the name ''Walaric(us)'' (English Walric), which is of Germanic origin and signifies “foreign power”. A notable example is Walric, abbot of Leuconay. Both “Saint-Valery” alriand “Saint-Valéry” aleriare common elements in French place-names, often used optionally for the same place. The second form is a modern misspelling for ‘Saint-Valery’, that is to say St Walric.

Notable people

* Valerie Amos, Baroness Amos (born 1954), British politician * Valerie Bertinelli, American actress * Valerie French, English actress *

Valerie Violet French Violet Valerie French Brougham Kindersley (13 February 1909 – 18 July 1997) was a Natal-born English socialite. She and her sister Essex Leila Hilary French were known as the "French sisters" and included in ''The Book of Beauty'' by Cecil Bea ...

(1909-1997), English socialite * Valerie Harper, American actress *

Valerie Hart Valerie Paul Hart (March 13, 1933February 26, 2021) was an indigenous political leader from the Wapishana ethnic group and a member of Guyana's Amerindian Party, opposed to the Forbes Burnham government; she ran for the 1968 general elections, ...

(1934–2021), indigenous political leader * Valerie Jarrett, American businesswoman and lawyer * Valerie Leon, British actress * Valerie Lilley, Northern Irish actress * Valerie Morales, Puerto Rican singer-songwriter *Valerie Parashumti (born 1987), one of the perpetrators of the 2006 murder of Stacey Mitchell in Perth, Australia * Valerie Plame, former CIA officer *

Valerie Sayers Valerie Sayers (born 1952) is an American writer and the author of six novels: ''The Powers'' (2013); ''Brain Fever'' (1996); ''The Distance Between Us'' (1994); ''Who Do You Love'' (1991); ''How I Got Him Back, or, Under the Cold Moon’s Shine'' ...

, American author * Valerie Singleton, British TV and radio presenter * Valerie Solanas (1936–1988), author of feminist book ''SCUM Manifesto'' *

Valerie Whipps Valerie Esang Whipps (née Remengesau) is a Palauan stateswoman who has been First Lady of Palau since 21 January 2021. Career Whipps accompanied her husband on a state visit to Taiwan in March 2021. They met with President of Taiwan Tsai Ing ...

, First Lady of Palau

Religion

* Valerie of Limoges, according to legend, an associate of St Martial, a cephalophoric martyr and an important subject of

Limoges Limoges (, , ; oc, Lemòtges, locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region ...

porcelain. *

Valeria of Milan Saint Valeria of Milan (d. 1st or 2nd century), or Saint Valérie, according to Christian tradition, was the wife of Vitalis of Milan and the mother of Sts. Gervasius and Protasius. History "Some modern writers contend that she may have been a c ...

, often known as St Valerie, venerated in Thibodaux, Louisiana * Valeria, a Christian saint martyred with Anesius

Sports

Dame Valerie Adams Dame Valerie Kasanita Adams (formerly Vili; born 6 October 1984) is a retired New Zealand shot putter. She is a four-time World champion, four-time World Indoor champion, two-time Olympic, three-time Commonwealth Games champion and twice IAAF ...

, New Zealand Olympic Shotputter * Valerie French, American professional wrestler * Valerie Sweeting, Canadian curler *

Valerie Zimring Valerie Le Zimring-Schneiderman (born March 28, 1965 in Los Angeles) is a former Olympic rhythmic gymnast. She represented the United States at the 1984 Summer Olympics, and finished 11th in the individual all-around. Early life Zimring was bo ...

, American rhythmic gymnast

Fictional characters

* Valerie, a character in '' Breath of Fire II'' * Valerie, a character in the animated series '' Frisky Dingo'' * Valerie, a character in Czechoslovak surrealist fantasy horror ''Valerie and Her Week of Wonders'' (1970 film) * Valerie Barlow, a character in the British soap opera ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'' * Valerie "Val" Bassett, a minor character on the TV show '' Will & Grace'' * Valerie Birkhead, a character in the TV show '' Sabrina the Teenage Witch'' * Valerie Brown (also known as "Valerie Smith"), a character in the '' Josie and the Pussycats'' franchise * Valerie Frizzle, character from '' The Magic School Bus'' * Valerie Gail, a character in the 1988 film '' Earth Girls Are Easy'' * Valerie Gray, a ghost hunter in the cartoon series ''

Danny Phantom ''Danny Phantom'' is an American animated superhero action adventure television series created by Butch Hartman for Nickelodeon. The series follows Danny Fenton, a teenage boy who, after an accident with an unpredictable portal between the human ...

'' * Valerie Lewton, a character from the 2000 film '' Final Destination'' * Valerie Malone, a character in TV series ''

Beverly Hills 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to by its short title, ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling under his production company Spelling Television. The series ran fo ...

'' * Valerie Page, a character from the graphic novel '' V for Vendetta'', as well as V for Vendetta (film) * Valerie Pitman, a character in TV series '' Doctors'' * Valerie "Val" Tyler, a character from the TV series '' What I Like About You''

Others

* List of Wikipedia articles beginning with "Valerie"

Given name Valérie

* Valérie Beauvais (born 1963), French politician * Valérie Lacroute (born 1965), French politician * Valérie Lang (1966–2013), French actress * Valérie Létourneau, Professional MMA fighter * Valérie Nadaud (born 1968), French race walker * Valérie Kaprisky (born 1962), French actress *

Valérie Quennessen Valérie Quennessen (3 December 1957 – 19 March 1989) was a French theatre and film actress. Biography Quennessen was born near Paris in Boulogne-Billancourt, of Jewish French/Polish parentage, and dedicated much of her childhood to pursuing ...

(1957–1989), French film actress