Brenda

Brenda is an English feminine name most likely derived from the Old Norse element brandr, meaning sword or torch, and may have originated as a feminine form of the Norse name Brandr. It was used mainly in Scotland and northern England before spreading more widely, partly through Sir Walter Scott's novel The Pirate (1821), in which Brenda is one of the central characters. The name gained broad popular use throughout the English-speaking world during the twentieth century. Related forms include the masculine name Brand and the Irish name Brendan, which shares a similar root.