Madeleine (given name)

Madeleine or Madeline is a feminine given name, ultimately of Greek origin. The name exists in various spellings and pronunciations and is popular among those living in Europe and English-speakers, as well as followers of Christianity, as Mary Magdalene was a central figure in the New Testament.

Madeleine is a modern rendering, found in English and French, of the Μαγδαληνή. It arose as a name due to its association with the Biblical character and female disciple Mary Magdalene. It has a secondary meaning from German of "little girl" (Mädelein).

Both variants are currently pronounced the same in English, but Madeline was formerly pronounced ; furthermore, they can be pronounced   in non-standard English.

Madelyn and Madalyn are alternative spellings. Diminutives include Maddy, Maddie, Maddi and Leine.

People named Madeleine

 * Madeleine of Valois (1520–1537), French princess who was briefly Queen consort of Scotland through her marriage to James V of Scotland
 * Madeleine Albright (1937–2022), American politician and the first woman United States Secretary of State
 * Madeleine Astor (1893–1940), second wife and widow of millionaire John Jacob Astor IV and a survivor of the RMS Titanic disaster
 * Madeleine Sophie Barat (1779–1865), French Catholic saint and founder of the Society of the Sacred Heart
 * Madeleine Béjart (1618–1672), French actor and theatre director
 * Madeleine Brès (1842–1921), first French woman to obtain a medical degree
 * Madeleine Boullogne (1646–1710), French Baroque still life painter
 * Madeleine Carroll (1906–1987), English actress
 * Madeleine Damerment (1917–1944), French Resistance member
 * Madeleine Dassault (1901–1992), French industrialist
 * Madeleine Dean (born 1959), American politician
 * Madeleine Herman de Blic, Belgian-born Indian social worker and humanist
 * Madeleine de Roybon d'Allonne (1646–1718), early settler of New France
 * Madeline Early (1912–2001), American mathematician and university professor
 * Madeleine Eastoe, Australian ballet dancer
 * Madeleine Juneau (1945–2020), Canadian museologist, teacher, nun
 * Madeline Kripke (1943–2020), American book collector
 * Madeleine Kunin (born 1933), American politician and first woman governor of Vermont
 * Madeleine Lartessuti (1478–1543), French shipper and banker
 * Madeleine L'Engle (1918–2007), American writer; author of the Wrinkle in Time series
 * Madeleine Lipszyc (known as Magdalith, 1932–2013), French painter, singer, composer, author and liturgist
 * Madeleine Mantock (born 1990), British actress
 * Madeleine McCann (born 2003), British girl who disappeared while on vacation in Portugal in May 2007
 * Madeleine Mitchell, British violinist
 * Madeleine Peyroux (born 1973), American jazz singer, songwriter, and guitarist
 * Madeleine de Puisieux (1720–1798), French philosopher and feminist writer
 * Madeleine Rolland (1872–1960), French translator and peace activist
 * Madeleine Smith (1835–1928), Scottish socialite tried for murder
 * Madeleine Stowe (born 1958), American actress
 * Madeleine Vionnet (1876–1975), French fashion designer who was the first to cut dresses on the bias
 * Madeleine Worrall (born 1977), Scottish actress
 * Princess Madeleine, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland (born 1982), seventh in line to the Swedish throne

People named Madeline

 * Madeline Bell (born 1942), American soul singer
 * Madeline McDowell Breckinridge (1872–1920), American women's suffragette leader and reformer
 * Madeline Brewer (born 1992), American actress
 * Madeline Carroll (born 1996), American actress
 * Madeline Duggan (born 1994), English actress
 * Madeline Fairbanks (1900–1989), American actress
 * Madeline Ivalu, Canadian filmmaker and actress
 * Madeline Juno (born 1995), German singer-songwriter
 * Madeline Kahn (1942–1999), American actress, comedian and singer
 * Madeline Lewellin (1854–1944), Australian artist
 * Madeline Manning (born 1948), American track and field runner
 * Madeline Mitchell (born 1989), American beauty pageant contestant
 * Madeline Perry (born 1977), professional squash player from Northern Ireland
 * Madeline Smith (born 1949), English actress and comedian
 * Madeline Zima (born 1985), American actress

Fictional characters

 * Madeline "Mad" Ashton, central character of the 1992 black comedy film Death becomes her
 * Madeline, heroine of the book series of the same name by Ludwig Bemelmans
 * Monsieur Madeleine, an alias used by Jean Valjean in the novel Les Misérables
 * Madeline Bassett, a recurring character in the Jeeves stories of P. G. Wodehouse
 * Madeline Bray, the wife of Nicholas Nickleby in the novel of that name by Charles Dickens
 * Madeleine Cahill, in The 39 Clues novel series
 * Madeleine Elster, the mysterious central character in Hitchcock's film, Vertigo
 * Maddy Ferguson, in the television series Twin Peaks
 * Maddie Fitzpatrick (Madeline), in Disney's TV series The Suite Life of Zack & Cody
 * Madeleine Gotto, from the Canadian children's animated television series Mona the Vampire
 * Madeleine Gravis, from Charlie Kauffman's film, Synecdoche, New York
 * Madeleine Hanna, the heroine of Jeffrey Eugenides' 2011 book The Marriage Plot
 * Madeline Hatter, daughter of the Mad Hatter in the Mattel doll franchise Ever After High
 * Madeline "Mads" Ryback, in the television show The Lying Game
 * Dr. Madeleine Swann, love interest in the 2015 James Bond film Spectre
 * Madeline Wayne, title character of Oh Madeline, an American sitcom that lasted one season (1983–84)
 * Madeline "Maddie" Fenton, the mother of the titular character of the American animated series Danny Phantom
 * Madeline Usher, the twin sister of Roderick Usher in the short story "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe
 * Madeline Westen, in the television series Burn Notice
 * Madeline (Celeste), protagonist of the 2018 video game Celeste
 * Maddy (Madeleine) Perez, in the television series Euphoria
 * Madeline, a character in 2024 movie Tarot