Given name
Thecla
“glory of God”
Thecla is a variant of Tekla. One Greek interpretation is “glory of God.”
Original GreekΘέκλα
Meaning & origin
What it means
Thecla is a variant of Tekla. One Greek interpretation is “glory of God.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
How it developed
Thecla developed from a shortened form of Greek Theokleia. The earlier name combines theos (“god”) and kleia (“glory”).
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1888. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Thecla through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 281
- 0 boys · 281 girls
- Most popular year
- 1917
- 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 1986. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 18 in 1917. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 247 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.
Thecla’s family of names
Thecla shares a linguistic root with Tekla. In English usage, Thecla has a conventional equivalent in the Italian form Tecla. Thecla has a related form in Tekla.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Thecla has relatives in 16 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
9 related names in 16 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 8
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Thecla
- Thecla ÅhlanderSwedish stage and film actress1855–1925
- Thecla BoesenDanish actress (1910–1996)
- Thecla of KitzingenBenedictine abbess and saint800–790
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Thecla, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Thetis
>99% girls
Theola
“one who is divine; godly”
>99% girls
Theta
“eighth letter of the Greek alphabet”
>99% girls
Thyra
“the shield-bearer”
>99% girls
Thelma
“one who is ambitious and willful”
>99% girls
Zela
“one who is blessed with happiness”
>99% girls
Onella
“lady of light”
>99% girls
Leitha
>99% girls