August
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The name August derives from the Latin Augustus, meaning “venerable, majestic, consecrated”.
The Latin word is built on the verb augere (“to increase, to enlarge, to honour”), itself from the Proto-Indo-European root *aug- (“to grow”), which also gave English augment, auction and auxiliary.
The original sense of augustus in Roman religion was a quality of objects and persons consecrated by the auspices, marked out as sacred.
What the name August means
The name was effectively created as an honorific by the Roman Senate, which conferred it on Octavian in 27 BCE, transforming him into Augustus Caesar, first emperor of Rome.
The month of August is named after him in commemoration of the year of his greatest victories.
The title became hereditary among Roman emperors and was later adopted by the Holy Roman Emperors and the kings of Saxony and Poland.
Augustus the Strong of Saxony (1670-1733) was a celebrated Baroque ruler whose collections founded the Dresden Zwinger.
Literary appearances include the orphan title character of R. J. Palacio”s novel Wonder (2012), August Pullman, made into a major film starring Julia Roberts in 2017.
August Strindberg (1849-1912), the Swedish playwright of Miss Julie and The Father, gave the name modernist credentials. American playwright August Wilson (1945-2005) won two Pulitzer Prizes for his Pittsburgh Cycle of plays.
According to US Social Security Administration records, August ranked in the boys top 200 from the start of records in 1880 through 1920, fueled by German and Scandinavian immigration.
It declined steadily through the mid-twentieth century, falling out of the top 1000 in 1969.
The revival began in 2013 and has been rapid: it reached rank 112 by 2023. Adoption is concentrated in the upper Midwest, the Pacific Northwest and the urban Northeast.
Contemporary bearers include the son of Mariah Carey, and the son of US actress Jeanne Tripplehorn.
US popularity over time
Numerology and symbolism
Based on Pythagorean numerology — a traditional system linking name letters to numbers. Presented for cultural interest.
August - similar names
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