Imogen (given name)

Imogen (/ˈɪmədʒən/), or Imogene (/ˈɪmədʒiːn/), is a female given name of uncertain etymology.

Imogen

Imogen from Shakespeare's Cymbeline in a painting by Herbert Gustave Schmalz
Pronunciation	/ˈɪmədʒən/
Gender	Female
Origin
Word/name	Unknown, possibly Celtic or Germanic
Meaning	Unknown, possibly "maiden", "daughter", "innocent" or “beloved child”
Other names
Related names	Imogene, Innogen, Immy or Imi (nickname), Imo (nickname), Idgie or Midge (nickname) Gen (nickname)

Origin

The name may have originated as an accidental or deliberate misspelling of the name Innogen, a rare^[1] Irish and Scottish Gaelic name which may have been common in the past, from the word 'inghean' meaning "maiden" or "daughter";^[2][3][4] or as a British Celtic name derived from the Latin Innocentia meaning "innocent".^[5][6]

Some modern baby name sources interpret Imogen as meaning “beloved child”, based on a speculative derivation from Greek-sounding elements: “Inno” (interpreted as “beloved”) and “gen” (meaning “child” or “birth”). While this etymology is not supported by classical Greek linguistics, it has gained popularity in contemporary name literature and online databases.^[7][8]

The name Innogen first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s 12th-century chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae, where she is described as a Greek princess, daughter of King Pandrasus, the wife of Brutus of Troy, the legendary founder of Britain, and mother of Locrinus, Albanactus and Camber.^[9]

Imogen was the name of a politically influential sister^[10] of Rivallon I of Dol, a contemporary and ally of William the Conqueror during the Breton-Norman War.

Popularity

In England and Wales Imogen was the 34th most popular baby girl name in 2014;^[11] in Australia the 35th most popular name for baby girls from 2011 to 2013;^[12] in Scotland in 2007, 86th.^[13]

As of July 2014, Imogen had never been in the top 1000 most popular baby names in the United States, with only 131 baby girls named Imogen in the US in 2013.^[14]

People

• Imogen Annesley (born 1970), Australian actress
• Imogen Bailey (born 1977), Australian model, actress and singer
• Imogen Bankier (born 1987), Scottish badminton player
• Imogen Binnie (born 1978/1979), American novelist and screenwriter
• Imogen Boorman (born 1971), British actress from Hellbound: Hellraiser II
• Imogen Cairns (born 1989), British gymnast
• Imogene Coca (1908–2001), American comic actress
• Imogen Cooper (born 1949), English pianist
• Imogen Cunningham (1883–1976), American photographer
• Imogen Edwards-Jones (born 1968), British author
• Imogen Grant (born 1996), British rower
• Imogen Hassall (1942–1980), British actress
• Imogen Heap (born 1977), English singer-songwriter
• Imogen Holst (1907–1984), British composer and conductor
• Imogen King (born 1996), English actress
• Imogen Kogge (born 1957), German actress
• Imogen LaChance (1853–1938), American social reformer
• Imogen Lloyd Webber (born 1977), British writer and theatre manager
• Imogen Murphy, Irish film and television director
• Imogen Poots (born 1989), British actress
• Imogen Simmonds [es] (born 1993), British-Swiss triathlete
• Imogen Stuart (1927–2024), German sculptor
• Imogen Stubbs (born 1961), English actress
• Imogen Thomas (born 1982), Welsh model and contestant on Big Brother UK
• Imogen Waterhouse (born 1994), English actress and model

Fictional characters

• Imogen (Shakespeare) from William Shakespeare's play Cymbeline
• Imogene, from Vincenzo Bellini's 1827 opera Il pirata
• Imogen, a character from Psyopus' 3-part song "Imogen's Puzzle"
• Imogen, portrayed by Julia Stiles in the comedy Down to You
• Imogen, from the book Bad Dreams by Anne Fine
• Imogen, from the book Imogen by Jilly Cooper
• Imogen, Angus' younger sister in the Australian children's novel Bumface written by Morris Gleitzman
• Imogene Herdman, from Barbara Robinson's children's story The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
• Imogen, daughter of Winifred Dartie (née Forsyte), from The Forsyte Saga
• Imogene, from Charles De Lint's The Blue Girl and In This Soul of a Woman
• Imogene "Idgie" Threadgoode, from Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe
• Imogen, from Jonathan Coe's novel The Rain Before It Falls
• Imogen, from BBC's British children's television comedy-drama series Sadie J
• Imogen Book, from Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox
• Imogen Brocklehurst, a character in Imogen
• Imogene O'Neil, heroine of the 2009 miniseries Meteor, played by Marla Sokoloff
• Imogen Melford, one of the four Melford sisters in Diana Wynne Jones's The Time of the Ghost
• Imogen Moreno, in the Canadian drama Degrassi
• Imogen Hazard, one of many twin girls in Angela Carter's 1991 book Wise Children
• Imogen, played by Louisa Lytton in the 2009 teen comedy American Pie Presents: The Book of Love
• Imogène, from Charles Exbrayat's series of humorous novels
• Aunt Imogene, from the 2010 film Alice in Wonderland portrayed by Frances de la Tour
• Imogene, Trixie Delight's maid in Addie Pray by Joe David Brown, also appearing in the film Paper Moon based on the novel
• Imogene Graham, a major character in Indian Summer, an 1886 novel by William Dean Howells
• Imogen, the principal female character in the Ascendance Trilogy by Jennifer A. Nielsen
• Imogen, from Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde
• Imogen Clark, a minor character in What Katy Did by Susan Coolidge
• Imogen Reed, from the video game SOMA
• Imogen, from Imogen Says Nothing, a play by Aditi Kapil
• Imogene Cleary, from The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, an Amazon original TV series. Played by Bailey De Young
• Imogen Staxton-Billing, from the Revengers' Comedies plays and Malcolm Mowbray's 1998 film Sweet Revenge, played by Kristin Scott Thomas
• Imogene Duncan, from the 2012 film Girl Most Likely, played by Kristen Wiig
• Imogen Spurnrose, from the Amazon original series Carnival Row, played by Tamzin Merchant
• Imogen Royce, an assassination target in the Hitman 3 video game
• Imogen Temult, Laura Bailey's character from campaign three of Critical Role
• Imogen Heaney, Rhea Norwood’s character in the Netflix adaptation of Alice Oseman’s series Heartstopper
• Imogen Adams, the protagonist of Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin, played by Bailee Madison
• Imogen Gunn, from Girl Meets Boy by Ali Smith
• Imogen S'Jet, From Homeworld 3
• Imogen Woods, Protagonist from Deep Space Discounts by DeepBlueInk
• Imogen Cardulo, From Fourth Wing
• Imogen Herondale, From The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare