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Thelda
How to Pronounce Thelda
Pronounced THEL-duh /ˈθɛl.də/Medium
Meaning: Thelda reads as an early-twentieth-century blend, sitting between Thelma - a name coined by the novelist Marie Corelli - and the -elda of Zelda, Hilda and Griselda, whose Germanic root hild means 'battle'. It has no single settled origin and is best understood as a period coinage.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
Thelda is an early-twentieth-century American name best read as a blend of fashionable sounds - the Thel- of Thelma, itself coined by the novelist Marie Corelli in 1887, and the -elda ending shared by Hilda, Zelda and Griselda, whose Germanic hild means 'battle'. No single source is recorded for it.
Thelda was never common - only a few dozen girls a year at its faint peak in the mid-1920s, entirely within its early-century span. It reads as a genuine period coinage rather than a name with deep roots, and it has not been revived in modern use.
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Thelda mean?
Thelda is an early-1900s American coinage blending sounds from Thelma and Zelda or Hilda.
How do you pronounce Thelda?
It's said THEL-duh /ˈθɛl.də/ - two syllables, stress on the first.
Is Thelda a boy or girl name?
Thelda is used as a girl's name.
How popular is Thelda?
Thelda has always been very rare, an early-twentieth-century coinage that never caught on.