Gerard is a male forename of Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. The name derives from Old Germanic 'ger' ('spear') and 'hard' ('hard/strong/brave'). Its meaning is 'strong/brave with the spear'. Common forms of the name are Gerard (English and Dutch), Gerardo (Italian and Spanish), Gérard (French), Gearóid (Irish), Gerhard , Gerhardt and Gerhart (Afrikaans, Dutch, and German). A few abbreviated forms are Gerry and Jerry (English); Gert and Gerd (Afrikaans, Dutch and German); Gerrit (Afrikaans and Dutch); Gertjie (Afrikaans), and Geert (Dutch).
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