| Name |
Example |
Gloss |
| Abel |
1H6 I.iii.40 |
Bible (Genesis 4): son of Adam and Eve, killed by his brother Cain |
| Abraham |
R3 IV.iii.38 |
Bible (Genesis 12): Hebrew patriarch, whose name is changed by God from Abram to Abraham (Genesis 17) |
| Abram |
MV I.iii.69 |
 Abraham above |
| Achitophel |
2H4 I.ii.34 |
Bible (2 Samuel 16): adviser to King David, who sided with Absalom in the conspiracy against David |
| Adam |
Ham V.i.31 |
Bible (Genesis 2): first human being Eve below |
| Amaimon, Amamon |
MW II.ii.282 |
name of a devil |
| Arthur |
H5 II.iii.9 |
malapropism for Abraham Abraham above |
| Barabbas |
MV IV.i.293 |
Bible (John 18): robber released instead of Christ at the Passover |
| Barbason |
MW II.ii.283 |
name of a devil |
| Beelzebub |
TN V.i.281 |
the Devil; or, a principal devil |
| Belzebub |
H5 IV.vii.135 |
the Devil; or, a principal devil |
| Bennet, Saint |
TN V.i.36 |
medieval name of Benedict; here, name given to a church |
| Cain |
Ham V.i.77 |
Abel above |
| Castiliano |
TN I.iii.39 |
[unclear meaning] possibly, a name of the devil |
| Crispian, Crispin, Saints |
H5 IV.iii.40 |
Crispinus and Crispianus, martyrs under Roman emperor Diocletian; joint feast day 25 October |
| Daniel |
MV IV.i.220 |
Bible (Daniel): influential Babylonian administrator and visionary |
| Deborah |
1H6 I.ii.105 |
Bible (Judges 4): Hebrew prophetess, judge, and army commander |
| Denis, Saint |
1H6 I.vi.28 |
first apostle of France, 3rd-c |
| Dives |
1H4 III.iii.31 |
Bible (Luke 16): rich man who feasted while the beggar Lazarus starved at his gate |
| Eve |
LLL V.ii.322 |
Bible (Genesis 2) wife of the first human being Adam above |
| Flibberdigibbet |
KL III.iv.110 |
name of a devil |
| Francis, Saint |
RJ V.iii.121 |
Francis of Assisi, Italian founder of the Francisan order, 13th-c |
| Fraterretto |
KL III.vi.6 |
name of a devil |
| George, Saint |
3H6 II.i.203 |
patron saint of England, 3rd-c |
| Golias, Goliath |
1H6 I.ii.33 |
Bible (1 Sam 17): Goliath; giant, seen as a model of strength |
| Hagar |
MV II.v.42 |
Bible (Genesis 16): bondwoman to Sarah, whose child was Ishmael, a ‘wild-ass of a man’ |
| Herod |
Ham III.ii.14 |
Bible (Matthew 2): Judean king, portrayed in medieval mystery plays as a wild and angry figure |
| Hoppedance /Hobbididence |
KL III.vi.30 |
name of a devil |
| Jacob |
MV I.iii.68 |
Bible (Genesis 25): Hebrew patriarch, the younger son of Isaac |
| Jacob, Saint |
MV I.iii.68 |
Philip and Jacob in DAYS AND DATES |
| Japhet |
2H4 II.ii.112 |
Bible (Genesis 10): Noah’s third son, the ancestor of Europeans |
| Jaques, Saint |
AW III.iv.4 |
Saint James; name of a pilgrim centre in Compostella, N Spain |
| Jephthah |
Ham II.ii.409 |
Bible (Judges 11): judge in Israel who promised God to sacrifice the first he met if he returned home victorious; this proved to be his daughter |
| Jeronimy, Saint |
TS induction.1.7 |
Jerome; but here a confusion with Hieronimo
CONTEMPORARY FIGURES |
| Jezebel |
TN II.v.40 |
Bible (1 Kings 16): infamous wife of King Ahab |
| Job |
2H4 I.ii.127 |
Bible (Job): patriarch, seen as a symbol of destitution and patience |
| Joshua |
LLL V.i.120 |
Bible (Joshua) Israelite leader
Nine Worthies in HISTORICAL FIGURES |
| Judas |
R2 IV.i.170 |
Bible (Matt 26 ) Judas Iscariot, betrayer of Christ |
| Judas Maccabaeus |
LLL V.i.121 |
Bible (1 Maccabees) leader of a Jewish revolt, 2nd-c BC
Nine Worthies in HISTORICAL FIGURES |
| Judith |
E3 II.i.170 |
Bible (Apocrypha; also, Judith); heroine who kills Assyrian general Holofernes with a sword |
| Laban |
MV I.iii.68 |
Bible (Genesis 30) uncle of Jacob
Jacob above |
| Lambert, Saint |
R2 I.i.199 |
7th-c bishop of Maastricht, and martyr |
| Lazarus |
1H4 IV.ii.24 |
Dives above |
| Legion |
TN III.iv.85 |
name of a devil |
| Lucifer |
MW II.ii.282 |
name of a principal devil; or, the Devil |
| Mahu |
KL III.iv.137 |
name of a devil |
| |
|
|
| Martin, Saint |
1H6 I.ii.131 |
patron saint of France, 4th-c |
| Mephostophilus |
MW I.i.123 |
name of a devil |
| Modo |
KL III.iv.136 |
name of a devil |
| Nicholas, Saint |
1H4 II.i.62 |
here, as patron saint of travellers |
| Nicholas, Saint |
TG III.i.292 |
here, as patron saint of scholars |
| Obidicut |
KL IV.i.58 |
name of a devil |
| Pharaoh |
MA III.iii.130 |
Bible (Exodus 14) Egyptian ruler |
| Philip, St |
1H6 I.ii.143 |
Bible (Acts 21): evangelist who had four daughters who were prophets
Philip and Jacob in DAYS AND DATES |
| Pilate |
R2 IV.i.238 |
Pontius Pilate, Roman prefect of Judea, 1st-c |
| Prodigal |
MW IV.v.7 |
Bible (Luke 15): son who foolishly wastes his share of his father’s estate |
| Samson |
1H6 I.ii.33 |
Bible (Judith 13): judge, possessor of legendary strength |
| Sarah |
E3 II.i.255 |
Bible (Genesis 16): Abraham’s wife, seen as a model of submission to a husband
Abraham above |
| Satan |
AW V.iii.259 |
the Devil |
| Smulkin |
KL III.iv.134 |
name of a devil |
| Solomon |
LLL I.ii.168 |
Bible (1 Kings 1): son and successor of David; proverbial for his wisdom |
| Whore of Babylon |
H5 II.iii.35 |
Bible (Revelation 17): prostitute figure, taken as a symbol of degenerate Rome, and thus of Roman Catholicism |
| Withold, Saint |
KL III.iv.115 |
[possible reading] defender against harms |