Basil (name)

Basil
Basil of Caesarea
Pronunciation/ˈbæzəl/ BAZ-əl, /ˈbɑːsəl/ BAH-səl
GenderMale
Origin
OriginGreek, Arabic
Meaning"royal, kingly, brave, valiant, chivalrous" in Greek; "brave, fearless, intrepid" in Arabic
Other names
Related namesBarsegh, Basel, Basile, Basileo, Basilio, Basílio, Basilius, Bassel, Bazil, Bazsó, Bażilju, Vasil, Vasile, Vasilije, Vasily, Vassilios, Vasyl, Vászoly, Vazul

The name Basil (royal, kingly) comes from the male Greek name Vassilios (Greek: Βασίλειος, female version Bασιλεία), which first appeared during the Hellenistic period. It is derived from "basileus" (Greek: βασιλεύς), a Greek word of pre-Hellenic origin, meaning "king", from which words such as basilica and basilisk (via Latin) as well as the eponymous herb basil (via Old French) derive, and the name of the Italian region Basilicata, which had been long under the rule of the Byzantine Emperor (also called basileus).

Derived names in different languages include Barsegh in Armenian; Basile in French; Basilius in German; Basilio in Italian and Spanish; Basílio in Portuguese; Basileo in Galician; Vasyl in Ukraine; Vasile in Romanian; Vasil in Bulgarian; Vasilije in Serbian; Vasiliy in Russian; Bazil, Bazsó, Vászoly and Vazul in Hungarian.

Notable people with the name include:

Rulers

Generals

Religious figures

Variant Baselios

  • Baselios I bar Baldoyo, Maphrian of the East (828–830) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios II, Maphrian of the East (848–868) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios III, Maphrian of the East (936–960) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios IV of Tagrit, Maphrian of the East (1046–1069) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Behnam Hadliyo (died 1454), Maphrian of the East (1404–1412), later Ignatius Behnam Hadliyo, Patriarch of Antioch, and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1445 until his death in 1454
  • Baselios Philoxenus, Maphrian of the East (1471–1487) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Abraham, Maphrian of the East (1496–1508) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios Solomon (died 1518), Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church, from 1509 until his death in 1518
  • Baselios Blias, Maphrian of the East (1518–1523) (See List of maphrians)
  • Baselios, Maphrian of Mosul, a great number of maphrians all called Baselios (See List of maphrians#Maphrians of Mosul (1533–1860)
  • Baselios Lazarus III (died 1713), Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church, from 1709 until his death in 1713
  • Baselios Sakralla III of Aleppo (died 1764), Maphriyano (Catholicos) of the Syriac Orthodox Church of the East from 1748 to 1760. He came to India in 1751 and was buried there
  • Baselios Cleemis (born 1959), Cardinal, Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
  • Baselios Paulose I (1836–1913), Catholicos of the East, the First Catholicos of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church from 1912 to 1913
  • Baselios Paulose II (1914–1996), Catholicos of India of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church from 1975 to 1996
  • Baselios Mar Thoma Paulose II (1946–2021), Catholicos of the East of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church from 2010
  • Baselios Thomas I (1929–2024), Catholicos of India, Maphrian, head of the Jacobite Syrian Christian Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church in India
  • Baselios Yeldo (1593–1685), a saint, Maphrian of the East of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 1678 until his resignation in 1684
  • Cyril Baselios (1935–2007), Maphrian, the first Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church

Variant Basilides

  • Basilides (2nd century AD), Egyptian Gnostic religious teacher

Given name

Surname

Variant Bacile

Variant Baseley

  • Godfrey Baseley (1904–1997), American radio executive
  • William Baseley (1521–1573/74), English politician, member of the Parliament of England in 1554 and 1555

Variant Basile

Variant Basilio

Variant Basilius

Variant Basilone

  • John Basilone (1916–1945), American soldier and U.S. Marine, recipient of the Medal of Honor

Variant Bassil

Variant Bazeley

Variant Bazell

Variant Bazil

Variant Bazley

Variant Pasi

Variant Vasil

Variant Vasile

Variant Vasili

  • Laert Vasili (born 1974), Greek Albanian actor and director
  • Petrit Vasili (born 1958), Albanian politician
  • Eni Vasili, Albanian journalist, writer, former news reporter, and TV talk show host

Variant Vasilj

Variant Vasko

Variant Vasović

Variant Vassili

Variant Wasilewski

Fictional characters

This page or section lists people that share the same given name or the same family name.
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