Delmar

Delmar is a masculine given name of English origin, ultimately derived from an English surname. The surname itself was borrowed from the Norman French phrase de la mare, meaning "from the pond". This phrase is a contraction of de la Mare, which originated as a locative name for someone who lived near a pond or marsh in Normandy, specifically from places called La Mare.

Etymology

The Norman French source de la mare ("from the pond") became the English surname Delamare or Delmar. In the United States, the name was also influenced by Catalan del Mar, meaning "of the sea", though this is a separate etymological branch. As a given name, Delmar gained popularity in the 19th and 20th centuries as a transfer from the surname.

History

The surname Delamare appears in medieval England after the Norman Conquest of 1066, brought by Norman settlers. The spelling Delmar emerged as a variant contraction. In the United States, Delmar was used as a given name and also appears in numerous place names across several states, including Delaware, Maryland, Iowa, and Alabama.

Related Forms

Variant forms of the name include Delmore and the patronymic Delmer. The surname Delamare shares the same origin, as does the rare locative surname from specific Norman locales.

• Meaning: from the pond
• Origin: Norman French → English surname
• Type: given name transferred from a surname
• Usage regions: mainly English-speaking world, particularly USA