Given name & surname
Lissa
“my God is bountiful”
Lissa is a variant of Lisa. In English use, Lisa carries the interpretation “my God is bountiful.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Lissa is a variant of Lisa. In English use, Lisa carries the interpretation “my God is bountiful.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
In English use, Lissa is a short form of Melissa. An origin associated with Melissa is Greek.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English use, Lissa is used as a shortened form of MELIssa.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1923. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Lissa is a short form of Melissa. The history of Melissa gives this family its wider story. In Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso, Melissa is the benevolent witch who frees Rogero from Alcina. Separately, Melissa has also been used in Ireland as an English form of Maoilíosa; the two contexts should not be collapsed into one origin.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Lissa through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 3,979
- 0 boys · 3,979 girls
- Most popular year
- 1963
- 122 babies
- 2025
- 12
- #8,651 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −5%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 12 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 8,651 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 4.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 122 in 1963. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,260 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.
Lissa’s family of names
Lissa is a short form of Melissa. Lissa has a related form in Lisa.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 2
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 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Lissa
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Lissa, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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