Robert
English
Etymology
Etymology tree
Proto-Germanic *hrōþiz
Proto-Germanic *Hrōþiberhtaz
Proto-West Germanic *Hrōþiberhtder.
Frankishder.
English Robert
From Anglo-Norman Robert, from the Old Frankish cognate of Old High German Hrodperht (normalised form: Ruodberht), from Proto-West Germanic *Hrōþiberht, from Proto-Germanic *Hrōþiberhtaz (literally “shining glory”). Doublet of Rupert.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈɹɒb.ət/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
- (General American, Canada) IPA(key): /ˈɹɑ.bɚt/
- (General Australian) IPA(key): /ˈɹɔb.ət/
- Hyphenation: Rob‧ert
Proper noun
Robert
- A male given name from the Germanic languages.
- c. 1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Life and Death of King Iohn”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, (please specify the act number in uppercase Roman numerals, and the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals):: Act I, Scene I:
- My brother Robert? Old Sir Robert's son? / Colbrand the giant, that same mighty man?
- 1984, John Edgar Wideman, Brothers and Keepers: A Memoir, Mariner Books, published 2005, →ISBN, page 93:
- I hadn't even considered names for a girl. Robby it would be. Robert Douglas. Where the Douglas came from is another story, but the Robert came from me because I liked the sound. Robert was formal, dignified, important. Robert. And that was nearly as nice as the chance I'd have to call my little brother Rob and Robby.
- 2025 August 27, Casey Tolan, Audrey Ash, Allison Gordon, Yahya Abou-Ghazala, Rob Kuznia, John Miller, “Police examine online videos, writings possibly linked to Minneapolis church shooting suspect”, in CNN[1], archived from the original on 4 September 2025:
- A 2017 yearbook photograph obtained by CNN shows Robert Westman, later known as Robin Westman, then a student at Annunciation Catholic grade school in Minneapolis.
- (rare compared to given name) A French surname originating as a patronymic.
Usage notes
- One of the most common English given names since the Norman Conquest.
Derived terms
Related terms
- pet forms: Bert, Bertie, Bob, Bobbie, Bobby, Rabbie (Scotland), Rob, Robbie, Robby, Robb
- variants: Robin (chiefly masculine), Robyn (chiefly feminine), Rupert
- feminine forms: Bertha, Roberta
surnames
- Dabb
- Dabbs
- Dabinett
- Dabson
- Dobb
- Dobbie
- Dobbin
- Dobbing
- Dobbins
- Dobbinson
- Dobbs
- Dobby
- Dobbyn
- Dobie
- Dobing
- Dobinson
- Dobkin
- Dobson
- Dopson
- Hob
- Hobb
- Hobbes
- Hobbins
- Hobbis
- Hobbs
- Hoblyn
- Hobson
- Hopkin
- Hopkins
- Hopkinson
- Hopson
- Nobb
- Nobbs
- Nobes
- Probert
- Probin
- Probyn
- Rab
- Rabb
- Rabbitt
- Rabson
- Rapson
- Rob
- Robarts
- Robb
- Robbens
- Robbie
- Robbin
- Robbins
- Robbs
- Roberson
- Roberts
- Robertson
- Robeson
- Robey
- Robin
- Robins
- Robinson
- Robison
- Roblett
- Roblin
- Robson
- Roby
Translations
given name
|
Albanian
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name
Declension
| singular | ||
|---|---|---|
| indefinite | definite | |
| nominative | Robert | Roberti |
| accusative | Robertin | |
| dative/ablative | Roberti | Robertit |
Azerbaijani
Proper noun
Robert (definite accusative Roberti, plural Robertlər)
- a transliteration of the English male given name Robert
Catalan
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Derived terms
- robertí
Cebuano
Etymology
From English Robert, from Anglo-Norman Robert, from the Old Frankish cognate of Old High German Hrodperht, from Proto-Germanic *Hrōþiberhtaz (literally “shining glory”).
Proper noun
Robert
- a male given name from English [in turn from the Germanic languages]
Chinese
Alternative forms
Etymology
From English Robert, the meaning “male idiot” first appeared in a TVB drama 《老友鬼鬼》 (1991).
Pronunciation
- Cantonese
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
- Jyutping: lo1 bat4
- Yale: lō bàht
- Cantonese Pinyin: lo1 bat4
- Guangdong Romanization: lo1 bed4
- Sinological IPA (key): /lɔː⁵⁵ pɐt̚²¹/
- (Standard Cantonese, Guangzhou–Hong Kong)+
Noun
Robert
- (Hong Kong Cantonese, slang, dated) male idiot
Synonyms
Dialectal synonyms of 傻子 (“fool; idiot”) [map]
Coordinate terms
References
- Bolton, Kingsley; Hutton, Christopher (2005), A Dictionary of Cantonese Slang: The Language of Hong Kong Movies, Street Gangs and City Life, Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, →ISBN, page 255
Czech
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈrobɛrt]
Proper noun
Robert m anim
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Declension
This proper noun needs an inflection-table template.
Danish
Proper noun
Robert
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Dutch
Etymology
From Middle Dutch robert, from Old French [Term?], from Germanic. Equivalent to a Frenchified form of Robrecht.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈroː.bərt/, /ˈrɔ.bərt/, (French-based pronunciation) /roːˈbɛr/
Audio: (file) - Hyphenation: Ro‧bert
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name
Derived terms
Related terms
Estonian
Proper noun
Robert
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Related terms
Faroese
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Usage notes
Patronymics
- Robert's son: Robertsson
- Robert's daughter: Robertsdóttir
Declension
| singular | |
|---|---|
| indefinite | |
| nominative | Robert |
| accusative | Robert |
| dative | Roberti |
| genitive | Roberts |
Finnish
Etymology
From Swedish Robert, from English Robert[1] or Latin Robertus, from Frankish *Hrōþiberht.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈrobert/, [ˈro̞be̞rt̪]
- Rhymes: -obert
- Syllabification(key): Ro‧bert
- Hyphenation(key): Ro‧bert
Proper noun
Robert
- a male given name from the Germanic languages, equivalent to English Robert
Declension
| Inflection of Robert (Kotus type 5/risti, no gradation) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| nominative | Robert | Robertit | |
| genitive | Robertin | Robertien | |
| partitive | Robertia | Roberteja | |
| illative | Robertiin | Roberteihin | |
| singular | plural | ||
| nominative | Robert | Robertit | |
| accusative | nom. | Robert | Robertit |
| gen. | Robertin | ||
| genitive | Robertin | Robertien | |
| partitive | Robertia | Roberteja | |
| inessive | Robertissa | Roberteissa | |
| elative | Robertista | Roberteista | |
| illative | Robertiin | Roberteihin | |
| adessive | Robertilla | Roberteilla | |
| ablative | Robertilta | Roberteilta | |
| allative | Robertille | Roberteille | |
| essive | Robertina | Roberteina | |
| translative | Robertiksi | Roberteiksi | |
| abessive | Robertitta | Roberteitta | |
| instructive | — | Robertein | |
| comitative | See the possessive forms below. | ||
| Possessive forms of Robert (Kotus type 5/risti, no gradation) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Derived terms
Statistics
- Robert is the 199th most common male given name in Finland, belonging to 3,032 male individuals (and as a middle name to 4,444 more), according to August 2025 data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency of Finland.
References
- ^ Kustaa Vilkuna (2005) [1976], Pirjo Mikkonen, editor, Etunimet, 4th edition, Helsinki: Otava, published 2011, →ISBN
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ʁɔ.bɛʁ/
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name, feminine equivalent Roberte, equivalent to English Robert
- a surname originating as a patronymic
Derived terms
- Brie-Comte-Robert
- herbe à Robert
- robert
Related terms
Further reading
German
Etymology
From Middle High German Robert, from Latin Robertus, from Frankish, from Proto-Germanic *Hrōþiberhtaz. Reinforced since the 18th century by French Robert. Other (chiefly southern) German forms are Rupert and Ruprecht.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈʁoːbɛʁt/, /ˈʁoːbɐt/ (with some regional variation, the latter being uncommon in western Germany)
Audio (Germany (Berlin)): (file)
Proper noun
Robert m (proper noun, strong, genitive Roberts)
- a male given name from Frankish, feminine equivalent Roberta, equivalent to English Robert
Related terms
Italian
Etymology 1
Unadapted borrowing from English Robert.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈrɔ.bert/[1]
- Rhymes: -ɔbert
- Hyphenation: Rò‧bert
Proper noun
Robert m
- a male given name in English
Etymology 2
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /roˈbɛr/[1]
- Rhymes: -ɛr
Proper noun
Robert m or f by sense
- a male given name and surname in French
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Robert in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)
Norwegian
Proper noun
Robert
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Old French
Etymology
Of Germanic origin, equivalent to Frankish *hrōþi (“fame”) + *berht (“bright”).
Proper noun
Robert m (nominative singular Roberz)
- a male given name, a Germanic (Old Frankish) borrowing
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈrɔ.bɛrt/
Audio: (file) - Rhymes: -ɔbɛrt
- Syllabification: Ro‧bert
Etymology 1
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.) Doublet of Rupert.
Proper noun
Robert m pers (female equivalent Roberta, diminutive Robercik)
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Proper noun
Robert m pers
- a male surname
Declension
Declension of Robert
Proper noun
Robert f (indeclinable)
- a female surname
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Proper noun
Robert f
- genitive plural of Roberta
Further reading
- “Robert”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN[4] (in Polish)
- Robert in PWN's encyclopedia
- “Robert”, in Internetowy słownik nazwisk w Polsce [Internet dictionary of surnames in Poland], 2025–2030
Swedish
Etymology
First recorded as a given name in Sweden in 1219.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /¹roːbɛʈ/, /¹roːbæʈ/
Proper noun
Robert c (genitive Roberts)
- a male given name, equivalent to English Robert
Related terms
- (male given names) Robin
- (surnames) Robertsson
References
- Roland Otterbjörk: Svenska förnamn, Almqvist & Wiksell 1996, →ISBN
- [5] Statistiska centralbyrån and Sture Allén, Staffan Wåhlin, Förnamnsboken, Norstedts 1995, →ISBN: 55 692 males with the given name Robert living in Sweden on December 31st, 2010, with the frequency peak in the 1970s. Accessed on 19 June 2011.