Given name

Rheta

“a well-spoken woman”·“a well-spoken man”

Rheta is a feminine form of Rhett. One Latin interpretation is “a well-spoken man.”

Meaning & origin

What it means

In Latin use, Rheta carries the interpretation “a well-spoken woman.” Rheta is a feminine form of Rhett. One Latin interpretation is “a well-spoken man.”

Combines direct and name-family evidence

Where it comes from

An origin associated with this spelling is Latin.

How it developed

Rheta is used as a feminine counterpart of Rhett.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1893. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Rheta is a feminine form of Rhett. The history of Rhett gives this family its wider story. Rhett Butler in Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind brought the surname Rhett into wider use as a first name. The surname connects with Dutch de Raedt and an older word for “advice.”

Combines direct and name-family evidence

Rheta through the years

Babies since 1880
1,200
0 boys · 1,200 girls
Most popular year
1934
151 babies
2025
0
Outside the ranked list
2021–25 vs 2016–20
—
Too few births to compare
0501001501900192019401960198020002025Highest share 19340.0
Rheta in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1893–2025, per million girls born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

By the numbers

The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 1974. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 151 in 1934. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 606 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.

Rheta’s family of names

Rheta is a feminine form of Rhett. Rheta has a related form in Retta. Rheta has a related form in Rhetta.

Walk Rheta’s family in the name graph

RhetaRhettaRettaRhetahRhettRetha

Inner ring: 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 3

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

Across languages 2

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

People named Rheta

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

Similar names

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

Latin

Sista

“sixth”

0Not recently recorded

>99% girls

Latin

Rufina

“a red-haired woman”

12Very rareRising fast

>99% girls

Old High German

Otilia

“wealth, riches”

21RareRising fast

>99% girls

Spanish · Old-fashioned

Zita

“patron of housewives and servants” · “little rose”

20RareSteady

>99% girls

Latin · Old-fashioned

Palma

“a successful man”

11Very rare

>99% girls

Latin

Illa

“island”

16Very rareSteady

>99% girls

Etruscan

Modena

Modena is a surname from Latin, ultimately from Etruscan. It is used in Italian.

0Not recently recorded

>99% girls

Italian · Old-fashioned

Nella

“the shining light”

34RareSteady

>99% girls

Sibling ideas

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

A brother for Rheta

A sister for Rheta