Praxis and Her Sisters

"Saint Praxidis" by Vermeer

Origin: Greek
Gender: Female
Meaning: "Practical", or "action"
Pronunciation: N/A
Other forms: Praxilla, Praxedes/Praxedis/Praxidis, Praxède/Praxéda, Praxed, Prassede

Thank you to Winter Flodman-Cash for suggesting Praxis (and her many other forms)!

Praxis is a Greek name meaning "practical", and is an epithet for the Goddess Aphrodite, and in that sense it is thought to mean more "action" or "active", as in the action of sexual intercourse. I'm not sure on a pronunciation, but I figured it could be something like "prah-ZEES", or the way I automatically say it, "PRACK-sus".

Praxis is also the word used for the practice of faith and worship for the Eastern Orthodox church, and "The Praxis School" is a school of Marxist philosophy. You must pass a Praxis test to become a certified teacher in the United States. Praxis is also a genus of moth in the Noctuidae family, mostly found in Australia, and brown in color. 

The more elaborate form, Praxedes, is the name of a 2nd-century Saint, and little is known about her. She is sometimes referred to as a sister of Saint Pudentiana, Saint Donatus, and Saint Timothy. Other times it is said that one of her brother is Saint Novatus, and not Donatus, and that she is a daughter of Saint Pudens. Praxedes and her siblings buried the bodies of Christians during a time of persecution and gave their goods to the poor. They died supposedly during the reign of Emperors Marcus and Antoninus II.

Praxilla, a form I wrote about on my previous blog, was the name of a Greek lyric poet, Praxilla of Sicyon, named one nine "immortal-tongued" women poets, and was highly esteemed, even having a statue made in her likeness.