Given name
Telma
“one who is ambitious and willful”
Telma is a variant of Thelma. One Greek interpretation is “one who is ambitious and willful.” Its derivation is not certain.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Telma is a variant of Thelma. One Greek interpretation is “one who is ambitious and willful.” Its derivation is not certain.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Telma is a variant of Thelma. A possible origin is Greek, although the derivation remains uncertain.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1915. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Telma is a variant of Thelma. The history of Thelma gives this family its wider story. Marie Corelli used Thelma for the Norwegian heroine of her 1887 novel. The character’s nationality does not make the name traditionally Scandinavian; a connection with Greek thelēma, “wish” or “will,” is only a proposed explanation.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Telma through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 276
- 0 boys · 276 girls
- Most popular year
- 1976
- 13 babies
- 2025
- 7
- #13,068 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 13,068 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,763 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.
Telma’s family of names
Telma has a related form in Thelma. In Icelandic usage, Telma has a related form in Thelma.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
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.
People named Telma
- Telma HopkinsAmerican actress and singer (born 1948)
- Telma MonteiroPortuguese judokaborn 1985
- Telma MadeiraPortuguese modelborn 1999
- Telma Santosbadminton playerborn 1983
- Telma EncarnaçãoPortuguese association football playerborn 2001
- Telma ÍvarsdóttirIcelandic association football playerborn 1999
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Telma, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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