Suzanne

Meaning of Suzanne

Suzanne, the Anglicized French form of the Hebrew Shoshannāh—literally “lily”—traversed classical Greek, Latin, and medieval French before gaining a secure foothold in English‐speaking societies, where it is now voiced as soo-ZAN (/suˈzæn/). The name’s etymological journey imbues it with layered connotations: in Jewish and Christian scripture Susanna is emblematic of moral integrity, while the lily she personifies has long served Western art and literature as a cipher for purity and renewal. Within Anglo-American culture the appellation reached its demographic zenith in the mid-twentieth century, a surge echoed by the public profiles of figures such as folk-rock singer Suzanne Vega and novelist Suzanne Collins, whose careers further naturalized the name in contemporary discourse. Although present-day birth records reveal a gradual numerical decline, Suzanne continues to occupy a niche of quiet classicism—less ubiquitous than its root form Susanna yet more decorous than the diminutive Suzie—offering parents a historically resonant, phonetically elegant choice that carries botanical grace and scriptural gravity in equal measure.