Meaning

noun any tree or shrub of the genus Ilex having red berries and shiny evergreen leaves with prickly edges

noun United States rock star (1936-1959)

originFrom Middle English holly, holi, holie, a shortened variation of holin, holyn (> English dialectal hollen, holm), from Old English holeġn, holen (“holly; prince, protector”), from Proto-West Germanic *hulis (“holly”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *kelh₂- (“to beat, break”). Cognates Cognate with Scots holin, hollin, holyn (“holly”), Dutch hulst (“holly”), German Hulst (“holly”), French houx…

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0