Gretchen

Look up Gretchen in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Gretchen (German pronunciation: [ˈɡʀeːtçən]; English pronunciation: /ˈɡrɛtʃən/, literal translation: Little Greta/Grete) is a female given name of German origin that is mainly prevalent in the United States.

Its popularity increased due to a major character in Goethe's Faust (1808) having this name. In German, the Gretchenfrage (question by Gretchen), derived from Faust, is an idiom for a direct question that aims at the core of a problem and that should reveal the intentions and mindset of the questionee. The question is usually inconvenient to the questionee since he or she shall confess to something crucial he or she was intentionally or unintentionally vague about before.

In German-speaking countries, Gretchen is not a common given name. As a rather colloquial diminutive form of Grete, which itself is a short form Margarete, it fell out of use when the popularity of the latter two names declined in the 20th century, such that they are now very rarely given to newborns.^[1]

People

• Gretchen (singer) (born 1959), Brazilian singer
• Gretchen Abaniel (born 1985), Filipino professional boxer
• Gretchen Albrecht (born 1943), New Zealand painter
• Gretchen Barretto (born 1970), Filipino actress
• Gretchen Bleiler (born 1981), professional halfpipe snowboarder and pioneer
• Gretchen J. Berg (born 1971), an American tv writer/producer
• Gretchen Brewin (21st century), Canadian politician
• Gretchen Carlson (born 1966), former Miss America and current TV host
• Gretchen Corbett (born 1947), American actress
• Gretchen Cryer (born 1935), American writer, actress, and lyricist
• Gretchen Driskell (born 1958), American politician, former member of the Michigan House of Representatives, and candidate for Michigan's 7th congressional district in 2016.
• Gretchen Dykstra (21st century), previous President and CEO of the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation
• Gretchen Egolf (born 1973), American actress
• Gretchen Franklin (1911–2005), English actress
• Gretchen Fraser (1919–1994), American alpine skier
• Gretchen Hofmann (21st century), professor at the University of California
• Gretchen Kirby (21st century), American educator
• Gretchen Lieberum (21st century), American singer
• Gretchen Magers (born 1964), former professional tennis player
• Gretchen Malalad (21st century), Filipina 2005 Southeast Asian Games karate gold medalist
• Gretchen Massey (born 1969), radio host and performer
• Gretchen Merrill (died 1965), American figure skater
• Gretchen Mol (born 1972), American actress
• Gretchen Morgenson (born 1956), Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist
• Gretchen Oehler (1943–2001), American actress
• Gretchen Osgood Warren (1868–1961), actress, singer, poet and muse
• Gretchen Parlato (21st century), American jazz singer
• Gretchen Passantino (21st century), Christian apologist
• Gretchen Peters (21st century), American country singer
• Gretchen Phillips (born 1963), American musician
• Gretchen Polhemus (born 1965), the 38th Miss USA
• Gretchen Quintana (born 1984), Cuban heptathlete
• Gretchen Rau (1939–2006), professional property master, set decorator, and art director
• Gretchen Ritter, American academic administrator
• Gretchen Rubin (21st century), American author and attorney
• Gretchen Ulion (born 1972), American ice hockey player
• Gretchen Whitmer (born 1971), Michigan State Senator and gubernatorial candidate
• Gretchen Wilson (born 1973), Grammy award-winning American country music singer-songwriter
• Gretchen Wyler (1932–2007), American actress

Fictional characters

• Gretchen, a fictional character from Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy
• Gretchen Morgan, fictional character from Prison Break
• Gretchen Berg, fictional character from Heroes
• Gretchen, a fictional character played by Eden Sher in Weeds
• Gretchen Cutler, a fictional character from You're the Worst
• Gretchen Ross, a fictional character from Donnie Darko
• Gretchen Witter, a fictional character from Dawson's Creek
• Gretchen, a fictional character from Phineas and Ferb
• Gretchen Grundler, one of six main characters in Recess
• Gretchen Schwartz, fictional character played by Jessica Hecht in Breaking Bad
• Gretchen Wieners, a fictional character played by Lacey Chabert in Mean Girls
• Gretchen, a fictional character from Invader Zim
• Gretchen Mannkusser, fictional character from Malcolm in the Middle
• Gretchen, a fictional character from Donald Fagen's song: The Goodbye Look, on his album The Nightfly
• Gretchen, a fictional character from Camp Lazlo
• Gretchen Grietchelson, a fictional character from Camp Lakebottom
• Gretchen Grimlock, the antagonist in Cryptids Island on the online game Poptropica.
• Kriemhild Gretchen, the witch form of Madoka Kaname, a fictional character from Puella Magi Madoka Magica
• Gretchen Bodinski, a fictional character from Suits
• Greedy Gretchen, a character who appeared in episodes of the TV sitcoms Three's Company and Three's a Crowd
• Gretchen, a character in George Tabori's farce stage-adoptation of Hitler's Mein Kampf

References