Vanessa

Vanessa is a feminine given name, especially popular in the United States, Germany and Brazil. It was invented by the Anglo-Irish writer Jonathan Swift for Esther Vanhomrigh, whom Swift had met in 1708 and whom he tutored. The name was created by taking "Van" from Vanhomrigh's last name and adding "Essa", a pet form of Esther.
In 1726 the name Vanessa appeared in print for the first time in Cadenus and Vanessa, an autobiographical poem about Swift's relationship with Vanhomrigh. Swift had written the poem in 1713, but it was not published until three years after Vanhomrigh died. Vanessa has been adopted later as the name of a genus of butterfly by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1807.
Vanessa was the 71st most popular name for girls born in the United States in 2007. It has been among the top 200 names for girls in the United States since 1953 and among the top 100 names for girls since 1977. It first appeared among the top 1,000 names for girls in the United States in 1950, when it appeared on the list ranked in 939th place.
In Germany Vanessa has been among the top 100 names for girls since 1976. The name became more and more popular and was the 7th most popular name for girls in the 1990s. In the following years its popularity dropped and the name is ranked in 42nd place for the decade 2000–2009.

---

Fem. proper name, also the name of a butterfly genus. As a name, not much used in U.S. before 1950. It appears to have been coined by Swift c. 1711 as a pseudonym for Esther Vanhomrigh, who was romantically attached to him, and composed of elements of her name. He used it in private correspondence and published it in the poem "Cadenus and Vanessa" (1713). The name Cadenus is an anagram of Decanus; that of Vanessa is formed much in the same way, by placing the first syllable of her sir-name before her christian-name, Hessy. [William Monck Mason, "History and Antiquities of the Collegiate and Cathedral Church of St. Patrick, Near Dublin," 1820] As the name of a genus of butterflies that includes the Red Admiral and the Painted Lady, it dates to 1808, chosen by Danish entomologist Johan Christian Fabricius (1745-1808) for unknown reasons. He has no obvious connection to Swift, and the theory that it was intended for *Phanessa, from Greek phanes "a mystical divinity in the Orphic system" does no honor to his classical learning.

---

This name was coined by Jonathan Swift for his friend Esther Vanhomrigh. Combine of Van and Essa. Name of a genus of butterfly, star.

Vans, Van, Ness, Roosevelt

Popularity	Name	Birth Year	Description
1	Vanessa Hudgens	1988	American actress
2	Vanessa Paradis	1972	French singer, model and actress
3	Vanessa Redgrave	1937	English actress
4	Vanessa Marcil	1968	Actress
5	Vanessa Mai	1992	German musician
6	Vanessa Marano	1992	American actress
7	Vanessa Bayer	1981	American actor and comedian
8	Vanessa Williams	1963	American actress, singer and former Miss America
9	Vanessa Kirby	1989	British actress
10	Vanessa Ray	1980	Actress
11	Vanessa Ferlito	1980	Actress
12	Vanessa Minnillo	1980	American actress and model
13	Vanessa Carlton	1980	American singer-songwriter
14	Vanessa del Rio	1952	American pornographic actress
15	Vanessa Rousso	1983	American poker player
16	Vanessa Blue	1974	American pornographic actress and director
17	Vanessa Lengies	1985	Canadian actress
18	Vanessa Simmons	1983	American TV personality
19	Vanessa Guide		French actress
20	Vanessa Bell	1879	British artist
21	Vanessa Fisk
22	Vanessa Bell Calloway	1957	Actress, dancer
23	Vanessa A. Williams	1963	American actress
24	Vanessa Morgan	1992	Canadian actress
25	Vanessa Marshall	1969	American actress
26	Vanessa Feltz	1962	British radio presenter
27	Vanessa Kerry	1976	American doctor
28	Vanessa Schneider	1969	French journalist and novelist
29	Vanessa Lee Chester	1984	Actress
30	Vanessa Hessler	1988	American model
31	Vanessa Blumhagen	1977	German journalist
32	Vanessa White	1989	Is an English singer-songwriter, dancer and actress
33	Vanessa Zima	1986	Actress
34	Vanessa Valence	1972	French actress
35	Vanessa Guedj	1976	French actress
36	Vanessa Villela	1978	Mexican actress
37	Vanessa Selbst	1984	American poker player
38	Vanessa Abrams
39	Vanessa Baden	1985	American actress
40	Vanessa Branch	1973	English American actress and model
41	Vanessa Lorenzo	1977	Spanish model
42	Vanessa Mdee	1988	Singer, TV Host
43	Vanessa Kensington
44	Vanessa Lee Evigan	1981	American actress
45	Vanessa James	1987	Figure skater
46	Vanessa Angel	1991	Indonesian actress
47	Vanessa Meisinger	1991	German television presenter
48	Vanessa Amorosi	1981	Australian singer-songwriter
49	Jennifer morel	1990
50	Vanessa Beecroft	1969	Italian painter
51	Vanessa Ferrari	1990	Italian artistic sports gymnast
52	Vanessa Claire Smith		American actress
53	Vanessa Saba	1975
54	Vanessa Pose	1986	Venezuelan actress
55	Vanessa Tevi	1992
56	Vanessa Brown	1928	Actress
57	Vanessa Acosta	1974	Mexican actor, television actor and stage actor
58	Vanessa Huppenkothen	1993	Mexican actor and model
59	Vanessa Kay		American model
60	Vanessa Claudio		Puerto Rican actor and model
61	Vanessa Curry	1990	Female model, dancer and singer-songwriter
62	Vanessa Bauche	1973	Mexican actress
63	Vanessa Pilon	1985	Canadian actor and television presenter
64	Vanessa Branson	1959	British art dealer
65	Vanessa Senior	1978
66	Vanessa Taylor	1970	American screenwriter
67	Vanessa Collingridge	1968	British television presenter
68	Vanessa Bell Armstrong	1953	American singer
69	Vanessa Guzmán	1976	Mexican actress
70	Vanessa Johansson	1980	American actress
71	Vanessa Porto	1984	Mixed martial artist
72	Vanessa De Roide	1987	Beauty pageant winner
73	Vanessa David		French actress
74	Vanessa da Mata	1976	Singer
75	Vanessa Neigert	1992	German musician
76	Vanessa Villante
77	Vanessa Kraven	1982	Professional wrestler
78	Vanessa Marquez		American musician
79	Vanessa Gold
80	Vanessa Friedman	1968	American fashion critic
81	Vanessa Axente	1995	Hungarian model
82	Vanessa McCarthy		American television producer and writer
83	Chrissie Vanessa	1997	Indonesian actress
84	Vanessa Downing	1958	Australian actress
85	Vanessa Atler	1982	American gymnast
86	Vanessa Aguilera	1989
87	Vanessa Harding	1970	American wrestler
88	Danielle Kamela
89	Vanessa Kelly	1974	Australian model
90	Vanessa Daou	1967	United States Virgin Islands musician
91	Vanessa Van Edwards		Author and behavioral investigator
92	Vanessa Giácomo	1983	Brazilian actress
93	Vanessa Oliveira	1981	Portuguese model
94	Vanessa Lynne Bryant	1954	United States federal judge
95	Vanessa Howard	1948	British actress
96	Vanessa D'Ambrosio	1988	Sammarinese politician
97	Vanessa Martins	1986	Portuguese designer
98	Vanessa Rangel	1971	Brazilian lawyer
99	Vanessa Fernandez	1982	Singer
100	Vanessa Miller	1965
101	Vanessa Martínez		Swimmer
102	Vanessa Mendoza	1981	Colombian model
103	Vanessa Petruo	1979	German actor and singer
104	Vanessa Incontrada	1978	Actor, Model
105	Vanessa Rudjord	1976	Norwegian journalist and editor
106	Vanessa Alves	1963	Brazilian actress
107	Vanessa Goulart	1977	Brazilian actress
108	Vanessa Torres	1986	American skateboarder
109	Vanessa Silva	1981
110	Vanessa Dorman	1969	American actress
111	Vanessa Gonçalves	1986	Venezuelan beauty pageant titleholder
112	Vanessa Fuchs	1996	German model
113	Vanessa Morley	1986	Canadian actress
114	Vanessa Larré		Swiss actress
115	Vanessa Martyn	1980	Spanish television presenter
116	Vanessa Low	1990	German athletics competitor
117	Vanessa Kurri		Finnish model
118	Vanessa Demouy	1973	French actress and model
119	Vanessa Grigoriadis	1973	American journalist
120	Vanessa DiBernardo	1992	American soccer player
121	Vanessa Bueno	1979	Brazilian actress
122	Vanessa Diffenbaugh	1978	American writer
123	Vanessa Briscoe Hay	1955	American singer and songwriter for the bands Pylon and Supercluster
124	Vanessa Fox	1972	American blogger
125	Vanessa Olivarez	1981	Singer
126	Vanessa Barum	1972	Brazilian actress
127	Vanessa Warwick	2000	English television presenter
128	Vanessa Show	1945	Argentine actress
129	Vanessa Arteaga		American electronic sports player
130	Vanessa de Oliveira	1975	Brazilian writer
131	Vanessa Fernandes	1985	Triathlete
132	Vanessa Woods	1977	Australian science writer
133	Vanessa King	1980	Canadian actress
134	Vanessa Hart
135	Vanessa Riche	1972	Brazilian journalist
136	Vanessa Ruiz	1950	American judge
137	Vanessa Goodwin	1969	Australian politician
138	Vanessa Quinones	1975	French singer
139	Vanessa Stacey	1975	New Zealand actress
140	Vanessa Benelli Mosell	1987	Italian pianist
141	Vanessa Mason	1976	German singer
142	Vanessa Place	1968	Writer
143	Vanessa R. Williams	1960	American singer
144	Vanessa Tamayo
145	Vanessa Bürki	1986	Association footballer
146	Vanessa Hollingshead		American actress and comedian
147	Vanessa O'Brien	1964
148	Vanessa Lawrence	1962	British government official
149	Vanessa Bruno	1967	Parisian designer
150	Vanessa Dolmen	1977	French television presenter
151	Vanessa Pascale	1974	Brazilian television actor
152	Vanessa Gilmore	1956	United States federal judge
153	Vanessa Gibson	1979	African-American politician
154	Vanessa Mesquita	1986	Brazilian model
155	Vanessa Zambotti	1982	Mexican judoka
156	Vanessa Noel		Fashion designer; Hotelier
157	Vanessa Terkes	1978	Peruvian actress
158	Vanessa Deleon		American interior designer
159	Vanessa Grazziotin	1961	Member of the Senate of Brazil
160	Vanessa Lóes	1971	Brazilian actress
161	Vanessa Lawrens	1980	French model
162	Vanessa Seward	1969	French fashion designer
163	Vanessa Veselka	1969	American Writer
164	Vanessa Echols	1960	American journalist
165	Vanessa García	1984	Puerto Rican swimmer
166	Vanessa Duriès	1972	French writer
167	Vanessa Rubin	1957	American singer
168	Vanessa Engle
169	Vanessa Crone	1990	Figure skater
170	Vanessa Cristina Pereira	1988	Brazilian association football player
171	Vanessa Atkinson	1976	Dutch squash player
172	Vanessa Guerra	1989	American politician
173	Vanessa Glodjo	1974	Bosnian actress
174	Vanessa Jopp	1971	German film director
175	Vanessa Webb	1976	Canadian tennis player
176	Vanessa Wagner	1973	French pianist
177	Vanessa Hinz	1994	German biathlete
178	Vanessa Davis	1978	Cartoonist
179	Vanessa Semrow	1984	American model
180	Vanessa González
181	Vanessa Winship	1960	British photographer
182	Vanessa Hegelmaier	1987	German model
183	Vanessa Jeri	1979	Peruvian actress
184	Vanessa Lam	1995	American figure skater
185	Vanessa Jennings	1952	Beadwork artist and traditionalist
186	Vanessa Lytton		Fictional executive officer in BBC TV medical drama Holby City
187	Vanessa Alfano	1976	Former American weather anchor; founder of healthystyleny.com
188	Vanessa Krasniqi	1990	Albanian singer
189	Vanessa Roth		American film director
190	Vanessa Robbiano	1976
191	Vanessa Montfort	1975	Spanish novelist, playwright and journalist
192	Vanessa Hayden	1982	American basketball player, center
193	Vanessa Bernauer	1988	Association footballer
194	Vanessa Gusmeroli	1978	Figure skater
195	Vanessa Peretti	1986	Venezuelan model
196	Vanessa Galvis	1992
197	Vanessa Gravina	1974	Italian actress
198	Vanessa Walder	1978	Austrian author
199	Vanessa Struhler	1985	German singer
200	Vanessa Quai	1988	Vanuatuan singer