Derek

See also: derék and derek

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed in the Middle Ages from a Middle Low German variant of Theodoric, and revived in the nineteenth century.[1] Not related to Hebrew דֶּרֶךְ (déreḵ, road).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈdɛɹɪk/
  • Rhymes: -ɛɹɪk

Proper noun

Derek

  1. A male given name from the Germanic languages.
    • 1895, The American Magazine, Crowell-Collier Publishing Company, page 446:
      "Do you think so? Her husband has an odd name - Derek Keppel. He is a musician - a violinist."
    • 1974, Joseph Heller, Something happened, →ISBN, page 509:
      We do not entertain as much anymore because of Derek. (He produces strain. We have to pretend he doesn't.) I used to like him when I still thought he was normal. I was fond of him. I used to call him Dirk, and Kiddo, Steamshovel, Dinky Boy, and Dicky Dare. Till I found out what he was. Now it's always formal: Derek.
    • 2010, James Robertson, And the Land Lay Still, Hamish Hamilton, →ISBN, page 292:
      Frederick or Derek Boothby was in his late fifties, the son of a naval officer and a daughter of the Earl of Limerick.
  2. A surname.

Usage notes

Popular in the UK in mid-twentieth century.

Derived terms

Translations

References

  1. Patrick Hanks, Flavia Hodges (2001) A Concise Dictionary of First Names, 3rd edition, Oxford University Press, →ISBN

Further reading

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