Virginia, virgin. Did the name come first or the word?

B.Serum · January 21, 2005, 5:46pm

Which informed the other?

zev_steinhardt · January 21, 2005, 5:49pm

The state of Virginia was named in honor of Queen Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen.

Zev Steinhardt

Exapno_Mapcase · January 21, 2005, 6:08pm

Or, if you’re a cynic, the “Virgin” Queen.

h.sapiens · January 21, 2005, 6:18pm

And I believe the first person with the given name Virginia was Virginia Dare, the first English person born in the New World.

Gary_T · January 21, 2005, 6:39pm

The word “virgin” comes from Latin. I’m sure it was around a long time before a name was derived from it.

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