Cecilia
Meaning of Cecilia
Cecilia flashes onto the naming stage like a flamenco dancer twirling crimson skirts—born from the Latin “caecus,” meaning “blind,” yet anything but short-sighted in charm. Legend paints her as Rome’s fearless patron saint of music, said to have heard heavenly choirs even as violins were centuries from invention, and that lyrical halo still clings to the name; parents can almost hear a lullaby woven into its very syllables. From frescoed cathedrals to Simon & Garfunkel’s toe-tapping anthem, Cecilia keeps popping up like a catchy chorus, proof that she refuses to stay backstage. Style-wise, the name glides effortlessly between languages—che-CHEE-lyah in Italy, seh-THEE-lyah in Spain, and the breezy suh-SEEL-yuh in English—so a little girl can grow into any corner of the globe without misplacing her melody. In the U.S. charts she’s been quietly climbing for over a century, lately sashaying around the 120s, a sweet spot that feels familiar yet far from overplayed. Altogether, Cecilia is a sun-dappled Roman courtyard in name form: historic, musical, spirited, and always ready to strike up the band.
Pronunciation
Italian
- Pronunced as che-CHEE-lyah (/tʃeˈtʃiːlja/)
Spanish
- Pronunced as seh-THEE-lyah (/seˈθilja/)
British English
- Pronunced as suh-SEEL-yuh (/səˈsiːljə/)
American English
- Pronunced as suh-SEEL-yuh (/səˈsiljə/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
States Popularity Chart
Notable People Named Cecilia
| Eliza Cecilia Beaux was an American portraitist and the first woman to teach at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, renowned for painting figures like Edith Roosevelt, Admiral David Beatty, and Georges Clemenceau. |
| Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin, a British-born American astronomer, pioneered research on the composition of the universe and variable stars, shaping modern astrophysics. |
| Cecilia Fire Thunder, an Oglala Sioux nurse and community health planner, became the first woman president of the tribe in 2004 but was impeached in 2006 over her plan to build a Planned Parenthood clinic without council consent after South Dakota banned most abortions. |
| Cecilia Chiang - Cecilia Sun Yun Chiang was a Chinese American chef and restaurateur who founded and ran The Mandarin in San Francisco. |
| Cecilia Pantoja - Cecilia, also known as Cecilia la Incomparable, was a Chilean singer songwriter in the nueva ola movement. |
| Cecilia Elena Rouse is an American economist who was the first Black chair of the Council of Economic Advisers and now leads the Brookings Institution, after serving as dean of Princeton's public and international affairs school. |
| Cecilia Dean is an American former fashion model and entrepreneur, best known as the cofounder of Visionaire, a multimedia art and fashion company. |
| Cecilia is a Norwegian classical crossover singer known for Amazing Grace who has released seven albums including two on Universal Music and performed worldwide, selling several hundred thousand albums with little mainstream publicity. |
| Cecilia Roth is an Argentine actress, a two time Goya Award winner and European Film Award winner, known as an Almodovar regular and the 1990s muse of Fito Paez. |
| Cecilia Mary Ady was an English writer and Oxford scholar of the Italian Renaissance whose dismissal by a former friend drew public attention and spurred colleagues to support her reinstatement. |
| Cecilia Betham was an Irish archer. |
| Cecilia Menjívar - Cecilia Menjivar is an El Salvador born American sociologist and UCLA Distinguished Professor known for influential research on migration, inequality, state power, and gender based violence. |
| Cecilia Lugo is a Mexican contemporary dancer and choreographer who has performed with the INBA National Dance Company and the Ballet Folklorico de Mexico. |
| Cecilia Mary Caddell was an Irish author known for popular Catholic inspirational works, novels, hymns, and biographies. |
| Cecilia Pérez - Cecilia Perez Jara is a Chilean politician who served as a minister in both Sebastian Pinera administrations. |
