Ned

Ned is an English given name that originated as a medieval pet form of Edward, arising through the practice of affectionate respelling in which the phrase "mine Ed" was reanalyzed as "my Ned," a process also responsible for the related nickname Ted. Edward itself derives from the Old English elements ead, meaning wealth or fortune, and weard, meaning guard. Ned has also been used independently as a diminutive of Edmund and Edwin, and it appears frequently in English-speaking folklore and literature, including the legendary Australian outlaw Ned Kelly.