The Name Imogen

The name of a princess in the play 'Cymbeline' (1609) by Shakespeare. Some people believe that Shakespeare based the character Imogen's name on Innogen, the first queen of Britain, and that the name was printed incorrectly in a play document hundreds of years ago and never corrected. However, there's a good argument here for why that theory may be wrong. Wikipedia says the name was probably created by Shakespeare for the play while mentioning the possibility of the misprint.

The name Innogen may have been derived from the Gaelic inghead and would therefore mean "maiden," a meaning often assigned to Imogen. If there is no Innogen-Imogen connection, then the etymology of Imogen is Shakespearean.

The name is currently rising in popularity in England and Wales, where it was the 34th most popular name for baby girls in 2007, and in New South Wales, Australia, where the name was the 35th most popular name for baby girls in 2007. It was ranked 86th in popularity for baby girls in Scotland in 2007. -Wikipedia

Imogen is not in the top 1000 names in the United States. -The Baby Name Wizard--have you tried it?

Pronounced IM-ә-jen

Famous Imogens:

Imogen Cunningham, photographer

Imogen Heap, musician