From the gemstone name, derived from Greek 'beryllos,' a precious blue-green mineral.
Beryl takes its name directly from the precious mineral family that includes emeralds and aquamarines, deriving from the Greek "beryllos" and the Sanskrit "vaidurya," ultimately tracing back to the ancient city of Velur in southern India where blue-green gemstones were traded. The mineral itself was prized in antiquity not only for its beauty but for supposed protective qualities — Roman emperors had eyeglasses ground from beryl crystal, giving us the German word "Brille" for spectacles. The name's most luminous bearer is undoubtedly Beryl Markham, the British-born Kenyan aviator, racehorse trainer, and writer who in 1936 became the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west — against the prevailing winds — landing in a Cape Breton bog after nearly nineteen hours aloft.
Her memoir "West with the Night" drew Hemingway's admiration. Beryl Bainbridge, the British novelist twice shortlisted for the Booker Prize, brought the name into literary circles through the latter twentieth century. As a given name, Beryl peaked in Britain and the United States during the Edwardian era and the 1920s, riding the Victorian and Edwardian fashion for gemstone names alongside Ruby, Pearl, and Opal.
It carries the particular charm of that era — sturdy yet glittering, unpretentious yet refined. By the mid-twentieth century it had retreated into quiet dignity, and today it sits in that rewarding category of vintage names poised for rediscovery, worn best by someone with a streak of unconventional courage.