A variant of Benedict, meaning blessed, given to a Shakespearian character in the play Much Ado About Nothing. Blessed. 15 popes have been named Benedict. The Benedictines monastical order. Shakespeare's witty bachelor Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A literary name from Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, where it belongs to a Young lord of Padua.
Right-hand son. Also a variant of Benedict. Variant of Benedict, meaning blessed, from the Old French. Became a common British surname after being introduced to Britian during the Norman Conquest. blessed. From benedictus meaning blessed.