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Deronda
How to Pronounce Deronda
Pronounced duh-RON-dah /dəˈrɒndə/Medium
Meaning: Deronda is an unusual name whose most credible source is literary: the surname of the hero of George Eliot's 1876 novel Daniel Deronda. Eliot appears to have invented the striking surname, giving it no fixed prior meaning. American families who took it up as a girl's first name likely responded to its melodic sound and its literary prestige rather than to any settled etymology.Low
Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Deronda most plausibly derives from Daniel Deronda, the 1876 George Eliot novel whose title surname the author seems to have coined. As a given name it reads as a literary borrowing rather than an inherited form.
Deronda was always very rare, given to only a couple dozen girls a year at its scattered high points across the twentieth century. A Deronda from mid-century would be a grandmother today, and the name keeps a rich, literary, slightly mysterious ring.
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Deronda mean?
Its origin is uncertain; it most likely comes from the surname in George Eliot's novel Daniel Deronda.
How do you pronounce Deronda?
It is said duh-RON-dah, three syllables with the stress on RON.
Is Deronda a boy or girl name?
Deronda is used here as a girl's name.
Is Deronda a popular name?
No, Deronda has always been very rare, never rising beyond scattered use.