Theophilus

Theophilus
Pronunciation/θiˈɒfɪləs/
Origin
MeaningLove of God
Friend of God
Region of originGreek
Other names
Variant form(s)Théophile, Teófilo, Feofil

Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (theós, "God") and φιλία (philía, "love or affection") can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend of God", i.e., it is a theophoric name, synonymous with the name Amadeus which originates from Latin, Gottlieb in German and Bogomil in Slavic. Theophilus may refer to:

People

Arts

  • Theophilus Cibber (1703–1758), English actor, playwright, author, son of the actor-manager Colley Cibber
  • Theophilus Clarke (1776?–1831), English painter
  • Theophilos Hatzimihail (c. 1870–1934), Greek folk painter from Lesbos
  • Theophilus Presbyter (1070–1125), Benedictine monk, and author of the best-known medieval "how-to" guide to several arts, including oil painting — thought to be a pseudonym of Roger of Helmarshausen

Historical

  • Theophilos (emperor) (c. 812–842), Byzantine Emperor (reigned 829–842), the second of the Phrygian dynasty
  • Theophilus (geographer), ancient Greek geographer
  • Theophilus (jurist) (fl. 533), one author of the Institutes of Justinian
  • Theophilus (Indo-Greek) (fl. 130 or 90 BC), Indo-Greek king
  • Theophilus of Edessa (695–785), medieval astrologer and scholar
  • Theophilos Erotikos (10th century), Byzantine jurist and geometer
  • Theophilus Protospatharius, (c. 7th century), Byzantine medical writer

Politics

  • Theophilus Bradbury (1739–1803), U.S. Representative from Massachusetts
  • Theophilus Eugene Connor (1897–1973), Birmingham, Alabama's notorious Commissioner of Public Safety during the American Civil Rights Movement
  • Theophilus Daniel (1817–1893), New Zealand politician
  • Theophilus Danjuma (born 1938), influential Nigerian soldier and politician
  • Theophilus Eaton (1590–1658), merchant, farmer, Puritan colonial leader, co-founder and first governor of New Haven Colony, Connecticut
  • Theophilus Howard, 2nd Earl of Suffolk (1584–1640), English nobleman and politician
  • Theophilus F. Metcalf (1816–1891), American farmer and politician
  • Theophilus Shepstone (1817–1893), British South African statesman
  • Theophilus Williams (1824–1904), mayor of Ballarat

Military

  • Theophilos Erotikos (fl. 1034–1042), Byzantine general and governor, rebel in Cyprus
  • Theophilus H. Holmes (1804–1880), Confederate general in the American Civil War
  • Theophilos Kourkouas (920–970), Byzantine general, grandfather of emperor John I Tzimiskes
  • Theophilus Weeks (1708–1772), soldier in the French and Indian War

Religious

Music

Other

Fictional characters

  • Theophilus, a pagan lawyer supposedly converted by Saint Dorothea of Caesarea at the scene of her execution
  • Theophilus, one of Leibniz's interlocutors in his book New Essays on Human Understanding
  • Professor Theophilus Branestawm, the protagonist of the Professor Branestawm series of children's books
  • Theophilus Goon, a policeman in Enid Blyton's Five Find-Outers series of children's mystery novels
  • Dr. Theophilus Grantly, in Anthony Trollope's novel Barchester Towers
  • Theophilus Msimangu, in Alan Paton's Cry, the Beloved Country
  • The title character of Theophilus North, the last novel written by Thornton Wilder, first published in 1973
  • Dr. Theophilus Tanner, from the Deathlands series of books
  • Theophilus Thistle, in a noted tongue-twister
  • Theophilus P. Wildebeeste, created by Lenny Henry
  • The title character of Theophilus (comic strip), a religious comic strip published 1966–2002
  • The title character of Theofilos (film), a 1987 Greek film about painter Theofilos Hatzimichail

See also

  • Theofelus, surname and given name
  • Theophil, a given name
  • Teófilo, a given name
  • Theophilia, the love or favour of God
  • Jedediah, a given name also meaning "Friend of God"
  • Godwin (disambiguation), the equivalent Anglo-Saxon name
  • Guðni [is], the Icelandic form of the name
Name list
This page or section lists people that share the same given name.
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