Mekdes

Syllable breakdown

Name meaning and origin

Origin

Amharic (Ethiopia)

Meaning

a feminine Amharic name meaning holy place or sanctuary — from the Ge'ez and Amharic mekdes meaning a consecrated holy precinct, particularly the inner sanctuary of a church where the tabot — the representation of the Ark of the Covenant — is kept; in the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian tradition the mekdes is the innermost, most sacred part of the church, accessible only to ordained priests, and is the symbolic equivalent of the Holy of Holies in the Jerusalem Temple; Ethiopia's unique and ancient relationship with the Ark of the Covenant — which Ethiopian tradition holds is housed in the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion in Axum — makes this name particularly resonant; a daughter named Mekdes is associated with this sacred quality of divine presence and consecrated holiness

Gender

female