Sigourney

English

Alternative forms

• (surname): Sigournay

Etymology

According to Ernest Nègre in his book Toponymie générale de la France (1990), the French placename Sigournais comes from Old French Segurniaci, which itself has been derived from Latin Secorinus + -acum. So it appears that the resemblance to Germanic dithematic names starting with *segaz is superficial.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɪˈɡɔː(ɹ)ni/, /sɪˈɡʊə(ɹ)ni/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (Iowa city): IPA^(key): /ˈsɪɡə(ɹ)ni/

Proper noun

Sigourney (plural Sigourneys)

1. (rare) A surname from French.
2. (rare) A male given name transferred from the surname.
   • 1925, F[rancis] Scott Fitzgerald, chapter 3, in The Great Gatsby, New York, N.Y.: Charles Scribner’s Sons, published 1953, →ISBN, →OCLC:

     “Please come and see me. . . . Phone book. . . . Under the name of Mrs. Sigourney Howard. . . . My aunt. . . .” [In the novel, "Mrs. Sigourney Howard" means "the wife of Mr. Sigourney Howard".]

3. (rare) A female given name transferred from the surname.
   • 2015, Interesting Literature, Five Fascinating Facts about The Great Gatsby:

     The actress Sigourney Weaver took her ‘stage’ name from Sigourney Howard, a minor character mentioned in The Great Gatsby. But what is also worth noting is the fact that the character’s name, ‘Mrs Sigourney Howard’, actually refers to the husband, so Sigourney is a male given name in the novel.

4. A small city, the county seat of Keokuk County, Iowa, United States.