Sassy Loretta encorporates both the glamour
of Golden-age Hollywood
and the earthiness of the Old West.
Origin: |
Loretta developed in the Middle Ages as a diminutive of Laura. One of the earliest known bearers of the name Laura was St Laura of Cordoba (d.864) and veneration of her cult encouraged use the name. Lawrence, associated and ultimately derived from the Latin laurus "laurel," was already well established at this time, as was the feminine Laurentia. It is impossible to know whether Laura derived as a hypocoristic form of Laurentia, or an independent coinage from the Latin laurus. Possibly it was a combination of both. |
Usage: |
By the 13th century, Laura and Lora were well established in Britain, in what George Redmonds ranks as "infrequent use." To put that into context, it was about as popular as Agatha, Clemence, Helewise and Mary. At the same time, Loretta was in use as a diminutive. Reaney and Wilson find mention of three in medieval manuscripts: Lauretta Pico in 1185; a Loretta in Yorkshire in 1219; and Loreta de Motecombe in Sussex in 1332. Loretta de Braose (b. c. 1185) was also the fourth Countess of Leicester and connected with the court of King John. Of course, we can never really be sure how many Lauras were called Loretta familiarly at this time, but it was used sufficiently enough to create the surnames Laurette, Lauret, Lorett, Lorette and Lawrett. Loretta and Lauretta maintained a steady, low usage through the following centuries until it picked up usage in the 19th century. Census records for women named Loretta or Lauretta clearly show this rise: 1841: 90; 1851: 126; 1861: 156; 1871: 250; 1881: 339; 1891: 500; 1901: 620; 1911: 593 In practice, this equated to no more than 25 births in any given year. Lauretta was the more common spelling during this period; Loretta took precedence in the 20th century with much the same usage, as seen with Leslie Dunkling's data for the number of girls registered with the names Loretta in every 10,000 births in England and Wales:
The popularity of Loretta, Loreta and Lauretta since 1996 in England and Wales has been as follows:
The slight peak in 2010 could be explained by Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker's use of the name for their daughter in the previous year. |
Famous Bearers: |
Contemporary: * Loretta Young (1913–2000), Oscar winning American actress. Celebrity Babies: * Marion Loretta Elwell Broderick "Loretta" (b.2009), daughter of Matthew Broderick and Sarah Jessica Parker, twin sister to Tabitha. |
Variants: | Lauretta, Lorette, Laurette |
Pronunciation: |
lə-RET-ə [key] |
Possible diminutives: |
Etta, Ettie, Letty, Lea, Lora, Lori, Lolly, Lotta, Lotty |
Sibling Names: |
Betsy Mae Vivian Rita Olive Scarlett |
Name Lists: |
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Thanks to Lucy for requesting this post.