Thelma

Where Thelma comes from

A literary invention, first appeared in the Swedish novel Kyrkoinvigningen i Hammarby (1840-1841) by Emilie Flygare-Carlén, translated into English as "The Magic Goblet" (1845). Similar names of ambiguous origin, Elma, Selma, Velma, appeared in the 19th century. By folk etymology explained as Ancient Greek θέλημα (thélēma, “will”). Notice also the Spanish and Portuguese Telma, a rare feminine form of Telmo, ultimately from Santelmo or Saint Elmo.
— Wiktionary's entry for Thelma
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #836 among girls — 5 babies in the first year on record.
  2. 1902
    Thelma Ritter born
    American actress and vaudevillian
  3. 1910
    Peak, #25
    2,976 babies named Thelma — more than any year before or since.
  4. 1940
    Thelma Schoonmaker born
    American film editor
  5. 1950
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #187.
In the dictionary
  • A female given name originating as a coinage.
Namesakes
  • Thelma Ritter · American actress and vaudevillian, 1902–1969
  • Thelma Schoonmaker · American film editor, born 1940
  • Thelma Todd · American actress, 1906–1935
  • Thelma Coyne Long · Australian tennis player, 1918–2015
  • Thelma Hopkins · British athlete, 1936–2025

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.