namesake

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a person or thing that has the same name as another

   My cousin Jane is my namesake, although we were named independently.

2. 2
   noun

   a person or thing whose name is given to another; an eponym

   The town's namesake was the queen who sponsored the expedition.

3. 3
   noun

   a person or thing named after another

   The new research vessel is the namesake of an earlier ship.

Simplified etymology

Namesake appeared in the mid-17th century and may be a shortening of the phrase “for one’s name’s sake.” Sake goes back to Old English sacu, from a Germanic base associated with an affair, legal action, or thing.

Recorded in the seventeenth century from the phrase for one's name's sake, later compressed to name-sake and namesake. Name descends from Old English nama, while sake descends from Old English sacu, 'cause or matter.' Usage can refer either to the source of a name or to the person or thing named after it.

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary