Editing Alexander (section)

==Etymology==
The name ''Alexander'' originates from the {{Langx|grc|Ἀλέξανδρος}} ({{Lang|grc-Latn|Aléxandros}}; 'defending men'<ref>{{LSJ|a)le/candros|Ἀλέξανδρος|ref}}.</ref> or 'protector of men'). It is a compound of the verb {{lang|grc|ἀλέξειν}} ({{Lang|grc-Latn|aléxein}}; 'to ward off, avert, defend')<ref>{{LSJ|a)le/cw|ἀλέξειν|shortref}}.</ref> and the noun {{lang|grc|ἀνήρ}} ({{Lang|grc-Latn|anḗr}}, [[genetive|genitive]]: {{lang|grc|ἀνδρός}}, {{Lang|grc-Latn|andrós}}; meaning 'man').<ref>{{LSJ|a)nh/r|ἀνήρ|shortref}}.</ref>

The earliest [[Attested language|attested form]] of the name, is the [[Mycenaean Greek]] feminine [[anthroponym]] {{lang|gmy|𐀀𐀩𐀏𐀭𐀅𐀨}}, {{Lang|gmy-Latn|a-re-ka-sa-da-ra}}, (/[[Alexandra]]/), written in the [[Linear B]] syllabic script.<ref>{{Multiref2
|1=Tablet [[Mycenae|MY]] V 659 (61). {{Cite web|url=http://www.palaeolexicon.com/default.aspx?static=12&wid=217|title=The Linear B word a-re-ka-sa-da-ra|website=Palaeolexicon. Word study tool of ancient languages}}
|2={{Cite web|url=https://www2.hf.uio.no/damos/Index/item/chosen_item_id/5622|title=MY 659 V (61)|website=DĀMOS Database of Mycenaean at Oslo|publisher=[[University of Oslo]]}}
|3={{cite web|last=Raymoure|first=K.A.|url=http://minoan.deaditerranean.com/resources/linear-b-sign-groups/a/a-re-ka-sa-da-ra-qe/|title=a-re-ka-sa-da-ra-qe| work=Deaditerranean. Minoan Linear A & Mycenaean Linear B}}
|4={{cite book|title=The Mycenaean World|first=John|last=Chadwick|author1-link=John Chadwick|place=New York|publisher=Cambridge University Press|orig-year=1976|year=1999}}
|5=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080627021042/http://www.geocities.com/kurogr/linearb.pdf Mycenaean (Linear B)&nbsp;– English Glossary]
}}</ref> [[Alaksandu]], alternatively called ''Alakasandu'' or ''Alaksandus'', was a king of [[Wilusa]] who sealed a treaty with the [[Hittites|Hittite]] king [[Muwatalli II]] c. 1280 BC; this is generally assumed to have been a Greek called Alexandros.

The name was one of the [[epithet]]s given to the Greek goddess [[Hera]] and as such is usually taken to mean "one who comes to save warriors". In the ''[[Iliad]]'', the character [[Paris (mythology)|Paris]] is also known as Alexander.<ref>[https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0073%3Aentry%3D*%29ale%2Fcandros Ἀλέξανδρος], Georg Autenrieth, ''A Homeric Dictionary'', on the [[Perseus Digital Library]].</ref> The name's popularity was spread throughout the Greek world by the military conquests of [[Alexander the Great]]. Most later Alexanders in various countries were directly or indirectly named after him.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.behindthename.com/name/alexander|title=Meaning, origin and history of the name Alexander|last=Campbell|first=Mike|website=Behind the Name|access-date=2019-06-10}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=2013-11-12|title=There Is Power In The Name Alexander - There Is Power In The Name Alexander Poem by alexander opicho|url=https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/there-is-power-in-the-name-alexander/|access-date=2022-02-24|website=Poem Hunter|language=en-us}}</ref>