Meaning and Origin
What does the name Rainbow mean? Keep reading to find the user submitted meanings, dictionary definitions, and more.
Origin and Meaning of Rainbow
User Submitted Origins
English
73%
Native American
18%
Jewish
9%
User Submitted Meanings
- A user from the United States says the name Rainbow is of Jewish origin and means "The promise of a new and better day, change for the better".
- A user from California, U.S. says the name Rainbow means "Gods promise".
- A submission from Texas, U.S. says the name Rainbow means "colour".
- A user from Virginia, U.S. says the name Rainbow means "Happiness".
- According to a user from the United Kingdom, the name Rainbow means "Free spirit".
International Interest
Also see international interest
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
noun Rain"bow`
A bow or arch exhibiting, in concentric bands, the several colors of the spectrum, and formed in the part of the hemisphere opposite to the sun by the refraction and reflection of the sun's rays in drops of falling rain.
Note: ☞ Besides the ordinary bow, called also primary rainbow, which is formed by two refractions and one reflection, there is also another often seen exterior to it, called the secondary rainbow, concentric with the first, and separated from it by a small interval. It is formed by two refractions and two reflections, is much fainter than the primary bow, and has its colors arranged in the reverse order from those of the latter.
Etymology: AS. regenboga, akin to G. regenbogen. See Rain, and Bow anything bent
Other Dictionary Sources
- An illusory hope ("chasing rainbows")
- An arc of colored light in the sky caused by refraction of the sun's rays by rain
Wiktionary
- A member of the Rainbow Guides, a Girl Guide movement for younger girls.