Felicity

Felicity is an English vocabulary word meaning “happiness, contentment”. The word was borrowed from the Late Latin “felicitas” meaning “happiness, good fortune”. Felicitas was borne by a 2nd/3rd century saint who lived as a slave in the Roman province of Carthage (Northern Africa) and was martyred alongside her mistress Saint Perpetua. These two saints were so highly celebrated in medieval times their names became closely associated with the Roman Church. Perpetua and Felicitas converted to Christianity during a period of time when baptisms were punishable by death in the Roman Empire, and this was the fate handed down to the two women. Their story was further enhanced by a first-person account written by Perpetua in her diaries in the days leading to their execution (if truly written in her own hand, the document is considered the oldest surviving work crafted by a woman). At the time, Perpetua was still nursing her newborn baby and Felicitas was pregnant. Since it was against Roman law to execute a pregnant woman, Felicitas had to wait to give birth (a Christian couple adopted her baby). The two women bravely faced their execution in a public arena (alongside a few other male martyrs at the same time). Saints Perpetua and Felicitas are called upon in prayer to watch over mothers separated from their children (usually during war or persecutions), and they also protect imprisoned mothers. They have historically served as examples of faith and courage which are qualities important especially in the Catholic Church. Yes, we know this isn’t the “happiest” of stories, but according to the story, Felicitas was more than “happy” to meet her fate and martyr herself in the name of Christ. It’s for this reason that the Puritans took up Felicity as a “virtue” name during or after the Protestant Reformation around the 17th century.