Posy (given name)

Posy or Posey or Posie is an English given name derived from the English term for a small flower bouquet.^[1] A posy is also a word for a single flower.^[2] It can also be derived from an English nickname, sometimes used independently, for a formal name such as Josephine.^[3][4] The name came into use along with other botanical names for girls in the 1800s.^[5] It has also been associated with poesy, referring to a collection of verses.^[6] A posie ring is a gold ring with a meaningful verse on its surface. They were exchanged by lovers as a symbol of commitment from the 1500s.^[7] Other spelling variants in use include Posee and Posi.^[8]

Posy

Making posies by Helen McNiccoll, 1910. One meaning of the name Posy is nosegay.
Gender	Unisex
Language(s)	English
Origin
Meaning	Single flower or nosegay or diminutive of Josephine.

A post-medieval gold posie ring found in Leicestershire, England. Dated between 1600 and 1800, it is inscribed "God above keep us in love."

Posey is also a surname with various possible English, French, and German etymological origins.^[9]

Notable people and characters with the name include:

Women

• Posie Graeme-Evans, Australian novelist, television and film producer, editor, screenwriter and director.
• Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, also known as Posie Parker, British anti-transgender rights activist and founder of the group Standing for Women
• Posy Miller (died 2002), British actress
• Rosamund “Posy” Musgrave (born 1986), British former cross-country skier
• Posy Simmonds (born 1945), British newspaper cartoonist, writer and illustrator

Men

• Posey G. Lester (1850–1929), American politician
• Posey Rorer (1891–1936), American old-time fiddler

Fictional characters

• Posy Fossil, a character in the children's novel Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
• Posey, a character in BBC children's television programme The Flumps

See also

• Pusai (died 344), Christian martyr also known as Posi