tiffany
/ˈtɪfəni/ noun, proper noun
Forms tiffanies
- noun A kind of gauze, or very thin silk.
- proper noun A northern English surname.
- proper noun A female given name transferred from the surname.
Synonyms
Etymology
From an Anglo-Norman common name for the festival of the Epiphany. See Tiffany.
From Old French Tifinie, Tiphanie, from Latin Theophania (“Epiphany”), from Ancient Greek θεο- (theo-, “god”) (combining form of θεός (theós, “god”)) + φαίνω (phaínō, “to shine, appear”). Doublet of theophany.
The given name (from circa 12th century) was usually given to girls born at Epiphany. The surname (from late 13th century) is a dialectal variant of the surname Tiffin, which derives from the given name variant Tiffania.
In modern times, the given name has been (re)popularized by the surname borne by Charles Lewis Tiffany, founder of jewelry company Tiffany & Co.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [OE. tiffenay; cf. OF. tiffe ornament, tiffer to adjust, adorn. See Tiff to dress.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “tiffany”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details