Meaning of the Name Lydia
Lydia is derived from the Greek place-name for Lydia in western Asia Minor, so the safest short gloss is 'woman of Lydia'. Acts identifies the woman as being from Thyatira; the passage does not separately explain her name's meaning.
Origin
The name Lydia is of Greek; derived from a place-name origin.
Who is Lydia in the Bible?
Lydia is a woman from Thyatira who trades in purple cloth at Philippi. She listens to Paul, is baptized with her household and welcomes the believers into her home (Acts 16:14-15, 40).
The story of Lydia in the Bible
We meet Lydia in one of the turning-point scenes of Acts. Prompted by a vision, Paul has crossed from Asia Minor into Macedonia and arrived in Philippi. On the Sabbath he goes to a place of prayer by the river and speaks to the women gathered there. Among the listeners is a dealer in purple cloth from Thyatira: Lydia, a worshiper of God. The narrative sums up what happens in a single line — the Lord opens Lydia's heart to respond wholeheartedly to Paul's message. She is baptized with her household and all but insists on hosting the missionaries in her home. Her home soon becomes the meeting place of the church in Philippi; when Paul and Silas are released from prison, they go straight there to encourage the believers. This enterprising woman, whose name means woman of Lydia after her home region in western Asia Minor, is remembered as the first person on European soil to believe the gospel — her hospitality a living picture of how the early church grew house by house.
Is Lydia mentioned in the Quran?
The name Lydia does not appear in the Quran; in the Bible she is remembered in the book of Acts as the dealer in purple cloth who came to faith in Philippi.
Verses where Lydia appears
- Acts 16:13-15 —
On the Sabbath day we went outside of the city by a riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down, and spoke to the women who had come together. A certain woman named Lydia, a seller of…
- Acts 16:40 —
They went out of the prison, and entered into Lydia’s house. When they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them, and departed.