Delilah is a feminine given name of uncertain meaning. The best known Delilah is the Biblical character.

Delilah
Delilah by Elihu Vedder.
GenderFeminine
Origin
Word/nameHebrew
Other names
Related namesDalila, Delila

The name has been in use in the United States and United Kingdom since the mid-1600s.[1] The increase in the usage of the name in the Anglosphere has been attributed to the influence of the 2006 popular song Hey There Delilah by the Plain White T's as well as its similarity in sound to other currently popular names such as Leila, Lila, and Lily.[2] Another source notes its similarity in sound to the etymologically unrelated words delightful and lilac.[3]

Usage

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It has been among the top one thousand names used for girls in the United States since 1997 and among the one hundred most used names for American girls since 2018. [4] It has been among the five hundred most used for girls in England and Wales since 2008 and among the top one hundred names for girls since 2018. [5] The variant Dalila was among the most popular names for newborn girls in 2021 in Bosnia and Herzegovina.[6]

Notable people

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References

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  1. ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 73. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
  2. ^ Sandel, Abby (23 February 2021). "Baby Name Delilah: Romantic Favorite". appellationmountain.net. Appellation Mountain (blog). Retrieved 13 May 2022.
  3. ^ 1,107 Baby Names that Stand the Test of Time by Jennifer Griffin, Workman Publishing Co., 2011, page 69, ISBN 978-0-7611-8016-6
  4. ^ "Popular Baby Names". www.ssa.gov.
  5. ^ Campbell, Mike. "Popularity for the name Delilah". Behind the Name.
  6. ^ https://www.klix.ba/vijesti/bih/sara-i-davud-su-najcesca-imena-koja-su-roditelji-davali-djeci-u-fbih-prosle-godine/220822039

See also

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