Barbara

Meaning: Its source is barbaros, a Greek name meaning "Foreigner."

Languages: This girl's name is used in German, Dutch, English, Italian, French, Spanish and Polish.

Nicknames: Babette, Barb, Barbar, Barbie, Bebe, Bibi and Babs

Compound Forms: Barbraann and Barbara-Rose

Alternative Spellings: Barbera

Variant Forms: Babara, Barabara, Barbarit, Barbarita, Barbeeleen, Barbette, Barbra and Barbel

Non-English Forms: Barbro, Varvara, Barbora and Borbála

Popularity: The name Barbara ranked 562nd in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 4th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

This name first made its appearance on state popularity lists before 1993, but is becoming less commonly used. In some cases, it has fallen off the lists altogether.

Narrative: This word was originally used to describe anyone who did not speak Greek. It might have originated as an approximation of unintelligible babble, similar in use to the modern American expression ''blah-blah-blah.''

Arts and Music

Barbara Chase-Riboud (born 1939)
American sculptor.
- Created The Cape (see list of 20th-century Contemporary Artists)
Barbara Hepworth (born 1903, died 1975)
English sculptor.
- Created the bronze Single Form (Memorial to Dag Hammarskjold) (see list of 20th-century Modern Artists)
Barbara Anne Kolb (born 1939)
First female American composer to win the Prix de Rome.
- Wrote Soundings (see list of Composers of the 20th Century)
Barbara Longhi (born 1552, died 1638)
Italian painter.
- Painted Madonna and Child (see list of Renaissance Artists)
Barbara Mandrell (born 1948)
American singer and musician.
- Winner of four Country Music Association awards, in 1979 and 1981 (see list of Country Music Association Award Winners)
Barbara Solomon
- American graphic designer (see list of Graphic Designers)

Leadership

Lee Barbara (born 1946)
- Reprentative, D-California, 1998- (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
Barbara Boxer (born 1940)
American politician.
- Senator, D-California, 1993- (see list of Women in the Senate)
- Representative, D-California, 1983-93 (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
Barbara Cubin (born 1946)
American politician.
- Representative, R-Wyoming, 1995- (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
Barbara Franklin (born 1940)
American government official.
- U.S. secretary of commerce, 1991-93 (see list of Women Cabinet Members)
Barbara Charline Jordan (born 1936, died 1996)
American lawyer, legislator and professor. The first African-American woman elected to Congress by a Southern state.
- Representative, D-Texas, 1973-79 (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
- 1976 National Council of Women''s Women of Conscience award winner (see list of Women of Conscience Award winners)
Barbara Bailey Kennelly (born 1936)
American politician.
- Representative, D-Connecticut, 1983-1999 (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
Barbara Ann Mikulski (born 1936)
American politician.
- Representative, D-Maryland, 1977-87 (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)
- Senator, D-Maryland, 1987- (see list of Women in the Senate)
Barbara F. Vucanovich (born 1921)
American politician.
- Representative, R-Nevada, 1993-1997 (see list of Women in the House of Representatives)

Miscellaneous

Barbara Bush
- Twin daughter of George W. Bush and Laura Bush (see list of Famous Twins and Triplets)
Barbara Pierce Bush (born 1925)
- Wife of George Bush, 41st President (see list of United States First Ladies)
Barbara Dougall
- 1939 Rose Queen (see list of Tournament of Roses, Rose Bowl Queens)
Barbara Gibson
- 1975 Pillsbury Bake-Off winner (see list of Pillsbury Bake-off Winners)
Barbara Haskell
- 1973 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)
Barbara Hewitt
- 1967 Rose Queen (see list of Tournament of Roses, Rose Bowl Queens)
Barbara Jackson
- American model (see list of Fashion Models)
Barbara Charline Jordan (born 1936, died 1996)
American lawyer, legislator and professor. The first African-American woman elected to Congress by a Southern state.
- 1992 Spingarn Medal winner (see list of Spingarn Medal Winners)
- 1975 Time Magazine Man of the Year, sharing the honor with 11 other women (see list of Time Magazine's Man of the Year Honorees)
- 1994 recipient of Presidential Medal of Freedom (see list of Presidential Medal of Freedom Winners)
- Member of National Women''s Hall of Fame (see list of National Women's Hall of Fame Members)
Barbara Kopple
- 1977 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)
Barbara Lekberg
- 1956 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)
Barbara McClintock (born 1902, died 1992)
American geneticist noted for her discovery of mobile genetic elements.
- Member of National Women''s Hall of Fame (see list of National Women's Hall of Fame Members)
Barbara Nichols
- 1936 Rose Queen (see list of Tournament of Roses, Rose Bowl Queens)
Barbara Romney
- 1957 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)
Barbara Schmidt
- 1954 Rose Queen (see list of Tournament of Roses, Rose Bowl Queens)
Barbara Palacios Teyde
- 1986 Miss Universe titleholder, representing Venezuela (see list of Miss Universe Winners)
Barbara Walker
- 1947 Miss America titleholder, representing Tennessee (see list of Miss America Winners)
Barbara Ward
- 1948 Mademoiselle Award winner (see list of Mademoiselle Award Winners)

Science and Philosophy

Barbara McClintock (born 1902, died 1992)
American geneticist noted for her discovery of mobile genetic elements.
- 1983 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology/Medicine (see list of Winners of the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine)
- 1970 National Medal of Science winner (see list of National Medal of Science Winners)
Barbara Wertheim Tuchman (born 1912, died 1989)
American historian.
- Author of popular history books, including The March of Folly (see list of Historians)

Sports

Barbara Cochran
American athlete.
- 1972 Olympic alpine skiing gold medal winner for Slalom (see list of Olympic Gold Medalists in Downhill Skiing)
Barbara Jordan
- 1979 Australian Open tennis champion (see list of Australian Open Tennis Champions)
Barbara Krause
German athlete.
- 1980 Olympic swimming gold medal winner for 100m and 200m Freestyle (see list of Olympic Gold Medalists in Freestyle Swimming)
Barbara Petzold
German athlete.
- 1980 Olympic Nordic skiing gold medal winner for 10km Cross-country (see list of Olympic Gold Medalists in Cross-country Skiing)
Barbara Roles Pursley
- 1962 U. S. Figure Skating champion (see list of United States Figure Skating Champions)
Barbara Ann Scott
Canadian athlete.
- 1948 Olympic gold medal winner for Figure Skating (see list of Olympic Gold Medalists in Figure Skating)

Stage and Screen

Barbara
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Caroline Aaron (see list of Characters in the film Crimes and Misdemeanors)
Barbara Barrie (born 1931)
American actress.
- Winner of the 1964 Cannes Film Festival Best Actress award, for One Potato, Two Potato (see list of Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Winners)
Barbara Billingsley (born 1922)
- Portrayed June Cleaver (see list of Actors on ''Leave it to Beaver'')
Barbara Britton (born 1920, died 1980)
American actress.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television (see list of Television Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Barbara Eden (born 1934)
American actress.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television (see list of Television Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
- Portrayed Jeannie (see list of Actors on ''I Dream of Jeannie'')
Barbara Hale (born 1921)
American actress.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television (see list of Television Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Barbara Harris (born 1935)
American actress.
- 1967 Tony Award winner for her performance in The Apple Tree (see list of Tony Winners for Best Actress in a Musical)
Barbara Hershey (born 1948)
American actress.
- Winner of the 1987 and 1988 Cannes Film Festival Best Actress awards, for Shy People and A World Apart (see list of Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Winners)
Barbara LaMarr (born 1896, died 1926)
American silent-film actress. Died from a drug overdose. Original name: Rheatha Watson.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Barbara Lawrence (born 1930)
American actress.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television (see list of Television Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Barbara Ryan Munson
Fictional character.
- Character on the soap opera ''''As the World Turns'''' (see list of Characters on ''As The World Turns'')
Barbara Rhoades (born 1947)
American actress.
- Portrayed Maggie Chandler from 1980-81 (see list of Actors on ''Soap'')
Barbara Stanwyck (born 1907, died 1990)
American actress. Original name: Ruby Stevens.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
- On Hollywood''s Footprints of Fame (see list of Celebrities Honored by Mann's Chinese Theater)
Barbara Sukowa (born 1950)
German actress.
- Winner of the 1986 Cannes Film Festival Best Actress award, for Rosa Luxemburg (see list of Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Winners)
Barbara Whiting
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Television (see list of Television Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)

The Literary World

Barbara W. Tuchman (born 1912, died 1989)
American historian.
- Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner for General Nonfiction, in 1963 for The Guns of August and in 1972 for Stillwell and the American Experience in China (see list of Winners of the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction)