Linnet as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Linnet

What is the meaning of the name Linnet ?

The baby name Linnet is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced /ˈlɪnɪt/ (LIN-it).

Linnet is English in Origin.

Linnet is an English feminine given name taken from the songbird (Linaria cannabina). The word entered Middle English as linet/linet(t)e from Old French linot/linotte, ultimately from Latin linum “flax,” referring to the bird’s fondness for flaxseed; hence the meaning “flax-eater” or, by extension, “linnet, small songbird.” As a personal name it appears sporadically in Britain from the late Middle Ages, more clearly adopted in the 19th century with the vogue for nature and bird names.

Usage has also been shaped by overlap with Lynette/Linette, a French-influenced diminutive of the Welsh Luned/Eluned (“image, idol”). Spellings and related forms include Linet, Linette, Lynet, Lynette, and nickname Linnie. Literary visibility comes from Agatha Christie’s heiress Linnet Ridgeway Doyle in Death on the Nile (1937). Today Linnet feels vintage and lyrical, evoking the gentle songbird while carrying the alternate Welsh-linked sense through its variant family.