Gwen (given name)

Gwen is a Welsh feminine given name meaning "white, holy". It can also be a shortened form of Gwenhwyfar (Guinevere) or other names beginning with the same element, such as:
 * Gwenhael, Gwenael, Gwenvael, Gwenaelle
 * Gwenda (explained as a compound of gwen "white, pure, blessed, holy" + da "good, well")
 * Gwendolen, Gwendoline, Gwendolyn
 * Gweneira (from gwen "white" + eira "snow")
 * Gwenfair (combination of gwen "blessed, holy" + -fair, soft mutation of Mair "(the Virgin) Mary")
 * Winefride (originally Gwenffrewi) (Gwenvred)
 * Gwenfron (from gwen "white" + fron, mutated form of bron "breast"; cf. Bronwen)
 * Gwenyth, Gwenith (identical to the Welsh word for "wheat")
 * Gwenllian
 * Gwennant (compound of gwen "white" + nant "stream, brook")
 * Gwenola (modern feminized form of Breton Winwaloe)

Although superficially similar, Gwyneth has a different, albeit uncertain, etymological origin (likely either from Gwynedd or the Welsh gwynaeth, meaning joy, bliss or happiness).

People

 * Gwen Apuli (born 2003), Filipino singer and rapper
 * Gwen Benaway (born 1987), Canadian poet and activist
 * Gwen Barlee (1963–2017), Canadian environmental activist
 * Gwen Berry (born 1989), American hammer thrower
 * Gwen Bristow (1903–1980), American author and journalist
 * Gwen Carr (born 1949), American activist, public speaker, and author
 * Gwen Davis (born 1936), American novelist
 * Gwen Dickey (born 1953), American musician
 * Gwen ferch Ellis (c. 1542 – 1594), the first recorded woman accused of witchcraft in Wales
 * Gwen Farrar (1897–1944), English musician, actress and comedian
 * Gwen Fleming (1916–2011), Australian doctor
 * Gwen Frostic (1906–2001), American artist, entrepreneur, and author
 * Gwen Gillen (1941–2017), American sculptor and artist
 * Gwen Graham (born 1963), American lawyer and politician
 * Gwen Guthrie (1950–1999), American singer
 * Gwen Harwood (1920–1995), Australian poet
 * Gwen Heeney (1952–2016), British sculptor
 * Gwen Ifill (1955–2016), American journalist
 * Gwen John (1876–1939), Welsh artist
 * Gwen Jorgensen (born 1986), American world and Olympic champion triathlete
 * Gwen Kelly (1922–2012), Australian novelist and short-story writer
 * Gwen Knapp (1961–2023), American sports journalist
 * Gwen Shamblin Lara (1955–2021), American founder of the Remnant Fellowship Cult and The Weigh Down Workshop
 * Gwen Lee (1904–1961), American actress
 * Gwen Margolis (1934–2020), American politician
 * Gwen Marston (1936–2019), American quilter, teacher, lecturer, and author
 * Gwen McCrae (born 1943), American singer
 * Gwen Meredith (1907–2006), Australian writer, dramatist and playwright, and radio writer
 * Gwen Moore (born 1951), American politician
 * Gwen Nagel (1946–2009), New Zealand cricketer and international cricket umpire
 * Gwen Ngwenya (born 1989), South African academic and politician
 * Gwen O'Mahony (born 1972), Canadian politician
 * Gwen Plumb (1912–2002), Australian performer
 * Gwen van Poorten (born 1989), Dutch television presenter
 * Gwen Ramokgopa, South African politician
 * Gwen Raverat (1885–1957), English wood engraving artist
 * Gwen Rix (1918−2000), New Zealand diver
 * Gwen Richardson (1894–1944), Australian actress and travel writer
 * Gwen Sebastian (born 1974), American country-rock singer
 * Gwen Shamblin, American author
 * Gwen Smith, Trinidadian cricketer of the 1990s
 * Gwen Somerset (1894–1988), New Zealand educator
 * Gwen Stefani (born 1969), American pop-rock, Ska and R&B singer
 * Gwen Svekis (born 1996), American softball player
 * Gwen Teirbron, Sixth century Breton saint
 * Gwen Verdon (1925–2000), American dancer and actress
 * Gwen Watford (1927–1994), English actress

Fictional characters

 * Saint Gwen Teirbron (sometimes called Blanche in French sources)
 * Gwen Choke, James Adams' deceased mother in the CHERUB novel series
 * Gwen Cooper, one of the main protagonists in the television series Torchwood
 * Gwen Cummings, character in 28 Days
 * Gwen Grayson, a character in the movie Sky High (2005)
 * Gwen Kindle, a character from the stop-motion series The Most Popular Girls in School
 * Gwen Mallard, a little duck from Migration
 * Gwen Meighen, an air stewardess from the 1968 novel Airport and its 1970 film adaptation
 * Gwen Norbeck Munson, from the TV soap opera As the World Turns
 * Gwen Raiden, from the TV series Angel
 * Gwen Rizczech, from the American soap opera Days of Our Lives
 * Gwen Runck, from the TV series That '90s Show
 * Gwen Stacy, character found in American comic books published by Marvel Comics
 * Gwen Stacy, fictional character in Marc Webb's Amazing Spider-Man films
 * Gwen Tennyson, from Cartoon Network's Ben 10 franchise
 * Gwen West, a character from the TV sitcom Gavin & Stacey
 * Gwen Hotchkiss Winthrop, from the American soap opera Passions
 * Gwen Wu, a character from the Nickelodeon animated TV series The Mighty B!
 * Gwen, a minor character from the American animated series Mission Hill
 * Gwen, a character from the Canadian animated series Total Drama
 * Gwen, a minor character from 6teen
 * Gwen, a 2009 "Girl of the Year" doll from the American Girl collection
 * Gwen, the recurring character from Johnny and the Sprites
 * Gwen, a recurring character from Sam & Cat
 * Gwen, a recurring character in the MMORPG Guild Wars, its expansion pack, and its sequel
 * Gwen, the castle's kitchen maid from Sofia the First
 * Gwen, a gunslinger hero in the video game Vainglory
 * Gwendaline, a character from the movie Bad Moms
 * Gwen (or Guinevere), from the British TV series Merlin
 * Gwen, the Hallowed Seamstress, a playable champion character in the multiplayer online battle arena video game League of Legends

Marvel Entertainment

 * Gwen Poole, the protagonist of the Unbelievable Gwenpool comic book series
 * Gwen Stacy (Earth-616), a love interest of Peter Parker (Spider-Man) in many of the Spider-Man comic book series
 * Gwen Stacy (Earth-65), the superhero Spider-Woman in the Spider-Gwen comic book series
 * Gwen Stacy / Spider-Woman, voiced by Hailee Steinfeld in the Spider-Verse films
 * Gwen Stacy (The Amazing Spider-Man), portrayed by Emma Stone in the Amazing Spider-Man films
 * Gwen Warren / Spider-Girl, a superhero and member of the X-Men