Glenn
/ɡlɛn/noun
A surname and given name, originally from a Gaelic place word meaning a valley or secluded glen.
Did you know?Glenn ultimately comes from Gaelic words for a valley, and in Scottish place-names those hidden hollows were often the settings where clans, roads, and old stories gathered.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Celtic
PCelt
*glendos
“A valley, glen, or deep narrow hollow”
Old Irish
OIr
gleann
“A valley or mountain hollow”
Scottish Gaelic
Gaelic
gleann
“A valley, glen”
Middle English
English
glen
“A narrow valley, especially in Scotland and Ireland”
Modern English
English
Glenn
“A surname and given name derived from a place-name or topographic term”