Bono
/ˈboʊnoʊ/noun
Bono is the stage name of Paul David Hewson, the Irish singer, songwriter, and activist best known as the lead vocalist of U2.
Did you know?Bono’s nickname developed from “Bonavox,” the name of a Dublin hearing-aid store, which echoes Latin bona vox, meaning “good voice.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Italic
Proto-Italic
*dwēnos
“Reconstructed ancestor associated with the idea of good or favorable; the exact development is debated.”
Old Latin
Old Latin
duenos
“Good, favorable; an early form related to Classical Latin bonus.”
Classical Latin
Latin
bonus
“Good, virtuous, favorable, or useful.”
Classical Latin
Latin
bona vox
“Good voice; the phrase later echoed in the name Bonavox.”
20th Century
English
Bonavox
“Name of a Dublin hearing-aid shop that inspired Hewson’s nickname.”
1970s–Modern English
English
Bono
“Stage name adopted by Paul Hewson, later internationally associated with the lead singer of U2.”
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