Araminta

A-ruh-MIHN-tuh

Literature, compound of Arabella and Aminta, Greek

"loveable; unyielding + defender; unfading"

Araminta Origin and Meaning

The name Araminta is a girl's name of English origin meaning "loveable; unyielding + defender; unfading".

Araminta is a poetic and enchanting eighteenth-century invention with plenty of elegance and a touch of old-fashioned clunkiness. It first appeared in William Congreve's 17th century comedy The Old Bachelor and then again in 1705 when it was used by architect and playwright Sir John Vanbrugh in his play The Confederacy.

There are several theories on where Araminta came from, one possiblity being that it is a compound name, blending Arabella with Aminta. Arabella is considered a variant of Anabella or derived from the Latin orabilis and means "loveable" or "unyielding". Aminta is itself a literary invention, meaning "defender". Together then, they form a strong name, connected to love and strength.

An alternative suggestion is that it was developed from the plant name Amaranth, meaning "unfading" from the Greek amarantos. Poet Richard Lovelace had used to altered form Aramantha forty years before Araminta appeared on stage and could have been the inspiration.

Other theories suggest that Araminta is: a form of Aminata, itself a variant of the Arabic Amina, meaning "safe and secure" or "trustful"; inspired by the Greek element anthos meaning "flower"; or a spin on the Germanic Arminius, meaning "whole, universal" or army man".

Moving away from the tangled etymology, Araminta was notably the birth name of abolitionist, Harriet Tubman. It is also borne by photographer Araminta de Clermont, and by actress Araminta "Minta" Durfee.

More familiar in Britain than the US, but rare there too, it has however proved popular in fiction. In the Enid Bagnold novel National Velvet, Araminta is the name of the central character's mother, while Araminta Lee is a character in Kevin Kwan's Crazy Rich Asians.It had also appeared in the Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn and in Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi.

Just 10 girls were called Araminta in 2023 in the US.

Araminta Rank in US Top 1000

# 858 in the US

Araminta Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 473 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Araminta

• 473 Nameberry 2025

20 Names Similar to Araminta

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Araminta.

• Eulalia
• Alouette
• Phaedra
• Ianthe
• Eudora
• Artemisia
• Euphemia
• Morwenna
• Anthea
• Leda
• Celestine
• Hestia
• Eurydice
• Xanthe
• Isidora
• Apollonia
• Ceridwen
• Zephyrine
• Severine
• Aurélie

Famous People Named Araminta

• Araminta Harriet Ross birth name of Harriet Tubman, American abolitionist
• Araminta Star Matthews American writer
• Araminta de Clermont British photographer
• Araminta Estelle "Minta" Durfee American silent film actress
• Aramenta Dianthe Vail American painter
• Araminta Clementine Megan Spencer Churchill (b. 2007), daughter of the 11th Duke of Marlborough

The name Araminta in Pop Culture

• Araminta Spook series of chapter books by Angie Sage
• Araminta Melliflua character mentioned in Harry Potter
• Araminta "Minty" Cane time traveler who appears as a "ghost" to a boy in the 18th century in Helen Cresswell's children's novel "Moondial"
• Araminta Brown Velvet's mother, a former channel swimmer, in National Velvet (1935) by Enid Bagnold
• Araminta Dench character in play The Farmer's Wife (1916)
• Araminta Moneytrap wife to the rich usurer Moneytrap, very intimate with Clarissa Gripe, in Vanbrugh's play The Confederacy (1705)
• Araminta character in William Congreve's 1793 comedy The Old Bachelor
• Araminta Lee character in the 'Crazy Rich Asians' trilogy by Kevin Kwan
• Aramantha title character in a 1649 pastoral by Richard Lovelace
• Matilda Angelina Araminta Phelps Tom Sawyer's baby cousin in Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
• "Araminta Station " novel by Jack Vance
• Araminta Holmes beekeeper
• Araminta Cowper character in Netflix's "Bridgerton"