Lydia (name)

Lydia (name)
Lydia is a feminine first name. It derives from the Greek Λυδία, Ludía, from λυδία (ludía; "beautiful one", "noble one", "from Lydia/Persia"), a feminine form of the ancient given name Λυδός (Lydus). The region of Lydia is said to be named for a king named Λυδός; the given name Lydia originally indicated ancestry or residence in the region of Lydia.
Bible
Lydia is a Biblical given name: Lydia of Thyatira, businesswoman in the city of Thyatira in the New Testament's Acts of the Apostles. She was the apostle Paul's first convert in Philippi and thus the first convert to Christianity in Europe. Lydia hosted Paul and Silas after their release from prison. It is possible that Lydia was the host for a house church during that time. According to Coleman Baker, "Lydia is described as a “worshipper of God” (probably synonymous with “God-fearer,” used elsewhere in Acts) “from the city of Thyatira” (located in Western Asia Minor) and “a dealer in purple cloth” (a luxury item in the ancient Mediterranean). She and her household are soon baptized and offer hospitality to the traveling preachers. Lydia's house becomes the site for the church in Philippi, with her as its host and perhaps leader.... According to the book of Acts, Paul and his associates founded the church in Phillipi when Lydia and her household were baptized. One might conjecture that several of the women from the “place of prayer” were among those who joined with Lydia in this new movement."
People
Lydia Baxter (1809–1874), American poet
Lydia Becker (1820–1890), British suffragette and amateur scientist
Lydia Cabrera (1899–1991), Cuban anthropologist and poet
Lydia Canaan, Lebanon-born pioneering singer-songwriter, humanitarian, and activist
Lydia de Crescenzo, Italian fashion designer working as "Lydia de Roma"
Lydia Maria Child (1802–1880), American abolitionist, women's rights activist, novelist and journalist
Lydia Avery Coonley (1845 - 1924), American social leader, clubwoman and writer
Lydia Cornell (born 1953), American actress, blogger and radio talk show host
Lydia Davis (born 1947), American author
Lydia Dunn, Baroness Dunn (born 1940), Hong Kong politician
Lydia Echevarría (born 1931), Puerto Rican actress
Lydia Hoyt Farmer (1842–1903), American author, women's rights activist
Lydia Mary Fay (1804-1878), American missionary, educator, writer, and translator
Lydia Rodríguez Fernández (born 1980), Spanish pop singer who participated in the 1999 Eurovision Song Contest
Lydia Field Emmet (1866–1952), American painter
Lydia Gibson (1891–1964), American artist
Lydia Gromyko (1911–2004), Belarusian agriculturist
Lydia Hatuel-Czuckermann (born 1963), Israeli foil fencer
Lydia Hearst (born 1984), American model and socialite
Lydia Jacoby (born 2004), American swimmer
Lydia Kavina (born 1967), Russian theremin player and conductor
Lydia Ko (born 1997), Korean-born New Zealand Professional Golfer
Lydia Koidula (1843–1886), Estonian poet
Lydia Lamaison (1914-2012), Argentine actress
Lydia Lassila (born 1982), Australian skier
Lydia Lazarov (born 1946), Israeli yachting world champion
Lydia Lindeque (1916–1997), South African actor
Lydia Litvyak (1921–1943), Russian fighter pilot in World War II
Lydia Lopokova, Baroness Keynes (1892–1981), Russian ballerina
Lydia Lunch (born 1959), American No Wave singer
Lydia Mackay (born 1977), American actress and voice actress
Lydia Mei (1896–1965), Estonian painter
Lydia Mendoza (1916–2007), American guitarist and singer of Tejano music
Lydia Millet (born 1968), American author
Lydia Night (born 2000), American punk musician
Lydia Pense (born 1948), American singer
Lydia Pinkham (1819–1883), American patent medicine manufacturer and businesswoman
Lydia Polgreen (born 1975), American journalist
Lydia Riezouw (1923–2005), Dutch photographer, resistance fighter during World War II
Lydia Shum (1945–2008), Hong Kong actress and comedian
Lydia Simoneschi (1908–1981), Italian actress and voice actress
Lydia Stahl (1890), a Russian espionage agent
Lydia H. Tilton (1839–1915), American journalist and temperance activist
Lydia de Vega (1964–2022), Filipina former athlete
Lydia Venieri (born 1964), Greek artist
Lydia Louisa Anna Very (1823–1901), American author and illustrator
Lydia Wahlström (1869–1954), Swedish historian, author and feminist
Lydia Weld (1878–1962), engineer and naval architect
Fictional characters
Lydia, a character from John Flanagan's series of novels, Brotherband
Lydia Sharp, a character from Silas House's novel, Southernmost, in which the character is symbolic of a fanatical Christian
Lydia, a follower (housecarl) NPC in the video game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Lydia, a character from The Walking Dead comic book series
Lydia, a character from the television show Hotel Transylvania: The Series
Lydia, the second portrait ghost from the GameCube game Luigi's Mansion
Lydia Aspen, in the 1952 novel Love for Lydia
Lydia Wickham (née Bennet), a character from Jane Austen's novel, Pride and Prejudice
Lydia Branwell, a character from the TV show Shadowhunters
Lydia Brenner, a character in The Birds
Lydia Brown, a character in The Birth of a Nation
Lydia Davis, a character from the television series Revenge
Lydia Deetz, a character in the 1988 feature film Beetlejuice and the subsequent television show Beetlejuice
Lydia Douce, a barmaid in the "Sirens" chapter of James Joyce's 20th century novel, Ulysses
Lydia Fox, a character from the Arthur television show
Lydia González, a bullfighter from the 2002 film, Talk to Her
Lydia Gwilt, the femme fatale in Wilkie Collins's novel, Armadale
Lydia Hadley, mother in Ray Bradbury's short story, The Veldt
Lydia Hillard, in the 1993 film Mrs. Doubtfire
Lydia Karenin, a former character on the ABC soap opera General Hospital
Lydia King, a character in Charles Bukowski's 1982 novel Ham On Rye
Lydia Languish, a character in Richard Sheridan's first play, The Rivals
Lydia Marlowe, a character in The Woman in Green
Lydia Martin, a character from MTV TV show Teen Wolf played by Holland Roden
Lydia Maxwell, a character from the 1987 movie Innerspace, portrayed by Meg Ryan
Lydia Rodarte-Quayle, a character from Breaking Bad
Lydia Tár, the titular character of the 2022 film Tár
Lydia, Countess of Walden, a character in Ken Follett's 1982 novel The Man from St. Petersburg
Lydia "Lyddie" Worthen, the main character of the 1991 historical novel Lyddie by Katherine Paterson and the 1993 TV movie based on it
Raven Lydia Baxter, the titular character of That's So Raven
Lydia, a neutral good goddess of music, light and knowledge in the Greyhawk setting of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game
Aunt Lydia, The Handmaid's Tale
Other
HMS Lydia, a fictional ship captained by Horatio Hornblower in the C.S. Forester's novel The Happy Return (called Beat to Quarters in the US)
, a US patrol vessel in commission from 1917 to 1919
, a US cargo ship in commission from 1918 to 1919
Lydia stone, a stone used to test the quality of gold and silver, a touchstone
See also
Lidia
Lidija
Lidiya
References
English feminine given names
Greek feminine given names
Feminine given names
German feminine given names
Given names