Given name

Fenella

“one who is fair; a whiteshouldered woman”

Fenella is a variant of Fiona. One interpretation is “one who is fair; a whiteshouldered woman.”

Meaning & origin

What it means

Fenella is a variant of Fiona. One interpretation is “one who is fair; a whiteshouldered woman.”

Explained through its name family

Where it comes from

Fenella is a variant of Fiona. An origin associated with Fiona is Irish.

Explained through its name family

How it developed

In Scottish use, Fenella is used as a form of Gaelic.

The story

Fenella is a variant of Fiona. The history of Fiona gives this family its wider story. James Macpherson is credited with first using Fiona. The writer William Sharp later adopted Fiona Macleod as a pen name, adding another literary chapter to its history.

Explained through its name family

Fenella’s family of names

In English usage, Fenella has a short form in FENNY. Fenella has a related form in Fiona. Fenella has a related form in Finola.

Walk Fenella’s family in the name graph

FenellaFénellaFionaFinolaFennyFinellaFionolaFionnghuala

Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Nicknames & forms 5

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Spellings & scripts 1

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

Across languages 1

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

See also 3

Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.

People named Fenella

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Similar names

If you love Fenella, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

Gaelic · Literary

Dervla

“one's true desire; a poet's daughter”

No U.S. birth series

>99% girls

Irish · Literary

Meneely

“son of the poet”

No U.S. birth series

—

Irish · Literary

Heeney

“God is gracious”

No U.S. birth series

—

Latin · Literary

Imogen

“a maiden” · “one who is innocent and pure”

48UncommonRising

>99% girls

Irish · Literary

Mctigue

“son of the poet”

No U.S. birth series

—

Irish · Literary

Mctague

“son of the poet”

No U.S. birth series

—

Gaelic · Literary

McBeth

“the son of Beth”

No U.S. birth series

—

Gaelic · Literary

Darcy

“having dark features”

53UncommonRising

6% boys · 94% girls

Sibling ideas

Names that share Fenella’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Fenella

A sister for Fenella