Etymology & Historical Origin of the Baby Name Porter

Porter is the transferred use of an English surname with French origins and could be derived from one of two occupational names. The Old French word “portier” (from Latin “porta”) means ‘door, gate’ and would have indicated a person who was either the doorkeeper of a large estate or the gatekeeper of a town. On the other hand, Porter could be derived from the occupation for one who worked as a “carrier of goods”, from the Old French “porteour” (from the Latin “portār”) meaning ‘to carry’. First recorded as Portarius in the 11th century, Porter is one of the oldest surnames in England.

All About the Baby Name – Porter

Personality

OF THE BOY NAME PORTER

The number 11 is a Master Number, and embodies heightened traits of the Two. This personality is on a life journey to find spiritual truth. They are extremely idealistic and intuitive. Elevens have a rare and exceptional spiritual energy that brings a sense of obligation to illuminate the world around them. It's a very powerful responsibility, but these people have far more potential than they know. It's important that they surrender to higher ideals. They have the capacity to see the bigger picture, and they possess the skills to inspire others spiritually. Elevens have strong diplomatic skills and can become great peacemakers. Master numbers can be both a blessing and a curse, as they walk the fine line between greatness and the potential for self-destruction.

Popularity

OF THE BOY NAME PORTER

Believe it or not, the height of Porter’s popularity in the United States was well over 100 years ago in the late 19th century. As we entered the 20th century, Porter’s popularity was clearly on the decline and by mid-century in the 1950s, he altogether fell off the charts. Porter locked his own door and threw away the key for almost 50 long years. It would not be until 1999 before the name would reemerge. Porter is probably following so many other surnames-turned-first-names up the charts. Carter, Cooper, Connor, Tanner, Parker – these are all English surnames which originally developed from occupational names. Their origins are often rather working-class but that’s what gives them their down to earth quality. And yet many people think Porter is a pretentious sounding name. That’s what makes it an interesting choice. It’s both stately and plebeian.

Quick Facts

ON PORTER

GENDER:

Boy

ORIGIN:

English

NUMBER OF SYLLABLES:

2

RANKING POPULARITY:

385

PRONUNCIATION:

POHR-tәr

SIMPLE MEANING:

Doorkeeper; Carrier of goods

Characteristics

OF PORTER

Inspirational

Highly Intuitive

Spiritual Teacher

Extremely Bright

Uplifting

Truth-seeker

Cultural References to the Baby Name – Porter

Literary Characters

OF THE BABY NAME PORTER

Jane is Tarzan’s lady-love in the hugely successful series of 24 books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, starting with “Tarzan of the Apes” in 1912. The series has been adapted into countless plays, movies, comics, television series, cartoons and games. Jane is first presented as the classic damsel-in-distress, an American woman who has come to Africa with her professor father, whereupon she gets ambushed by apes and is rescued by Tarzan. Later Jane must be rescued by Tarzan again – in a forest fire in Wisconsin, no less! Over the course of her appearances, she evolves into a very competent woman who is well-matched as Tarzan’s mate and rugged enough to bear his child in a very rustic Africa. She may take a back seat to the Ape-man most of the time, but we’d say, with those credentials, cut her some slack.

We cannot find any significant literary characters by the name of Porter

Childrens Books

ON THE BABY NAME PORTER

We cannot find any childrens books with the first name Porter


Popular Songs

ON PORTER

Hey Porter
a song by Marty Stuart

Famous People

NAMED PORTER

Porter Wagoner (country musician)
Porter Goss (former CIA Director)
Porter Hall (actor)

Children of Famous People

NAMED PORTER

We cannot find any children of famous people with the first name Porter

Historic Figures

WITH THE NAME PORTER

We cannot find any historically significant people with the first name Porter