Vanessa (name) Vanessa (name) Vanessa is a feminine given name, especially popular in the United States, Germany and Brazil. It was invented by the Anglo-Irish writer Jonathan Swift for Esther Vanhomrigh, whom Swift had met in 1708 and whom he tutored. The name was created by taking "Van" from Vanhomrigh's last name and adding "Essa", a pet form of Esther. In 1726 the name Vanessa appeared in print for the first time in "Cadenus and Vanessa", an autobiographical poem about Swift's relationship with Vanhomrigh. Swift had written the poem in 1713, but it was not published until three years after Vanhomrigh died.
Vanessa Neumann Vanessa Neumann Vanessa Neumann (born 1972) is a Venezuelan-American business owner, author and political theorist. She is the president and founder of Asymmetrica, a political risk research and consulting firm headquartered in Washington, DC. Neumann served for four years on the OECD's Task Force on Countering Illicit Trade, and is a current consultant to UN Women on gender-based approaches to preventing and countering violent extremism. She is the author of the 2017 book "Blood Profits: How American Consumers Unwittingly Fund Terrorists". Vanessa Neumann was born in Caracas, Venezuela to Michal (Miguel) Neumann (1947-1992) and Antonia Donnelly (1947-2015). Miguel Neumann was