Character Name
Dorothy
Dorothy Dorothy carries the warmth of early twentieth-century American naming — wholesome, grounded, and fundamentally optimistic. Characters named Dorothy are often figures of practical resourcefulness who discover extraordinary capabilities when circumstances demand them, in the tradition of Baum's immortal heroine.
Best genres for Dorothy
Famous characters named Dorothy
Dorothy Gale
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz — L. Frank Baum
The Kansas farm girl swept by a cyclone to the magical Land of Oz whose quest to return home became one of the most beloved journeys in American children's literature.
Variations & nicknames
Pairs well with
Writing a character named Dorothy?
Hearth's distraction-free editor helps you develop characters and write every day.
Related names
Edith
French · “Édith is a name used in French, an adoption of the Old English Eadgyth, composed of ead meaning "wealth, fortune, prosperity" and gyth meaning "war, battle" — thus "prosperous in war". The name was introduced to France through contact with England and became naturalized in French. In France the name is forever linked to Édith Piaf, the iconic Parisian singer, making Édith synonymous with authentic working-class French feeling and tragic grandeur.”
Ruth
Biblical Hebrew · “The etymology of the Hebrew "Rut" is uncertain, but proposed meanings include "friend", "companion", or "sight" (possibly from Hebrew "re'ut"). In the Hebrew Bible, Ruth is the Moabite woman who follows her mother-in-law Naomi back to Bethlehem with the declaration "Where you go I will go" — a story of extraordinary loyalty that became the foundation for Jewish conversion law.”
More English names
Curtis
“Curtis is an English masculine name and surname of Anglo-Norman origin, derived from the Old French curteis meaning "courteous," "well-bred," or "refined," itself from cort (court) combined with a suffix implying courtly manners. It was a name given to those associated with noble courts and their refined social codes.”
Ethyl
“Ethyl is an English feminine name, a variant of Ethel, which is derived from the Old English element æthel meaning "noble" — the same root as in names like Audrey (Æthelthryth) and Alfred (Ælfred). Ethel/Ethyl was popular as a given name in Victorian and Edwardian England and America, carrying connotations of old-fashioned nobility and dignified domesticity.”
Eula
“Eula is an English feminine given name, a shortened form of Eulalia, derived from the Greek eulalia meaning "well-spoken" or "sweetly speaking," from eu (well, good) and lalein (to speak). Saint Eulalia of Mérida was a fourth-century Spanish martyr, and the name saw particular use in the American South during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.”
Quincy
“Quincy is an English surname used as a given name, of Norman French origin, derived from a place name in Normandy — Quincy-sous-Sénart — ultimately from Latin Quintiacum, meaning "estate of Quintius," where Quintius derives from the Latin quintus meaning "fifth." The name is associated in American history with the Adams family of Massachusetts and their hometown of Quincy.”
Zack
“Zack is an English masculine given name, typically a short form of Zachary or Zachariah, which derive from the Hebrew Zechariah meaning "God has remembered" or "remembered by God," from zachor (to remember) and yah (God). As an independent name it is found primarily in English-speaking countries, carrying an informal, contemporary quality.”
Mallory
“Mallory is an English surname used as a given name, derived from the Old French maleüré meaning "ill-fated" or "unfortunate," from malheur (misfortune). It was a Norman surname brought to England after the Conquest, most famously associated with Sir Thomas Malory, author of Le Morte d'Arthur. As a given name it is used particularly in American English.”
Explore more