Meaning & origin
A reliable meaning for Cecila isn’t established in our sources yet. Rather than guess, we show what is recorded: how the name is used, how often, and the names it’s connected to.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1900. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Cecila through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 804
- 0 boys · 804 girls
- Most popular year
- 1970
- 18 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 2022. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 18 in 1970. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,325 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Cecila’s family of names
Cecila may belong to the same name family as CECILLA. This is a tentative spelling connection.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Cecila, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Sarita
“princess”
>99% girls
Sonia
“having great wisdom and foresight”
>99% girls
Ursula
“resembling a little bear”
>99% girls
Ericka
Ericka is a feminine given name from Germanic.
>99% girls
Suzanna
“resembling a graceful white lily”
>99% girls
Susannah
“resembling a graceful white lily”
>99% girls
Salina
“one of a solemn, dignified character”
>99% girls
Jeanna
“God is gracious”
>99% girls