Della

DEHL-uh

Diminutive of Adela, Adele or Adelaide

"noble"

Della Origin and Meaning

The name Della is a girl's name meaning "noble".

Fresh, bright, and sunny, Della could be an alternative to Ella, Delilah, or Adeline. Familiar but not yet overused, it combines the elements of contemporary favorites with vintage charm.

With its noble meaning and associations with delight, Della was a popular choice in the 19th century and remained so up until the 1930s, when it slowly began to fall out of favor. It disappeared from the Top 1000 in 1978, but, after an absence of 40 years, it re-entered the charts in 2018.

This reappearance was perhaps partly inspired by actress and singer Della Reese, who died in 2017. This could have brought the name to the attention of a new generation of parents, and it has been climbing the US charts ever since.

As a diminutive of Adela or Adelaide (or perhaps Delphine, Madeline, or Idella), Della fits into the trend of nicknames as proper names, blending well with the likes of Mila, Josie, and Nora.

As of 2023, it is given to around 450 girls in the US each year and may well be one to watch out for. A small caution, however, is that della does mean "from the" in Italian.

Della Rank in US Top 1000

# 647 in the US

Della Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 290 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Della

• 647 US 2023
• 290 Nameberry 2025
• 642 Future 2028
• 834 England 2023

20 Names Similar to Della

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Della.

• Luella
• Marnie
• Lettie
• Inez
• Gwenyth
• Tillie
• Lilibet
• Tess
• Nellie
• Margaux
• Elouise
• Margo
• Essie
• Talullah
• Libby
• Maxine
• Mavis
• Loretta
• Tilly
• Gwyneth

Famous People Named Della

• Della Reese (born Delloreese Patricia Early) American actress, singer and TV personality
• Della May Fox American singer and comedienne
• Della Monroe Grainger grandmother of screen icon Marilyn Monroe
• Della Jones Welsh mezzo,soprano
• Idella "Della" Thrasher Sehorn American swimmer
• Della aka Ding Dang (born Wu Xian) Chinese pop singer
• Della Rose Joel daughter of Billy Joel & Alexis Roderick
• Della Eaves (b. 2012) daughter of ice hockey player Patrick Eaves

The name Della in Pop Culture

• Della main character in "The Gift of the Magi" (1906) by O. Henry
• Della Duck twin sister of Donald Duck; mother to his nephews Huey, Dewey and Louie
• Della Street secretary character in the Perry Mason series
• Della Frye character in movie "State of Play"
• Della Michaelson character in "The Orchardist" by Amanda Coplin
• Della Alexander character on British soap "EastEnders"
• Della Chappell main character in 1964 TV movie "Della"
• Della Falls on Vancouver Island Canada, named after the wife of the man who discovered them in 1899
• Della Italian preposition
• Della character on TV series 'Raised by Wolves'
• Adaline "Della" Bowman titular character in the film Age of Adaline (2015)
• Della Vacker character in "Keeper of the Lost Cities" by Shannon Messenger