🔥Theodora

thee-oh-DOR-ah
Feminine variation of Theodore, Greek
"gift of God"

Theodora Origin and Meaning

The name Theodora is a girl's name meaning "gift of God".

Theodora is one of the most revival-worthy of the charmingly old-fashioned Victorian valentine names, softly evocative but still substantial, as is the reversed-syllable Dorothea.

The name Theodora was borne by several saints and by the beautiful ninth wife of the Emperor Justinian, who became the power behind his throne. A later royal was Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark, the older sister of the late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.

Keith Richards named his daughter Theodora (with whom he recently collaborated on a best-selling children's book) in 1985; Robbie Williams did the same just last year. In TV's Grey's Anatomy Dr. Theodora "Teddy" Altman was a surgeon.

Theodora offers a menu of neat nicknames, from the classic Teddy to trendy Thea to the vintage Dora. Theodora also has some cool international variations as well: Theodosia, Feodora and Teodora. It reentered the US Top 1000 in 2019 for the first time in over 60 years and seems destined to follow brother name Theodore toward the top of the list.

# 772 in the US

Theodora Rank in US Top 1000

# 240 on Nameberry

Theodora Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Theodora Popularity

Famous People Named Theodora

  • Saint Theodora
    4th century Alexandrian martyr with Saint Didymus
  • Theodora I
    Byzantine Empress as wife of Justinian I
  • Theodora II
    Byzantine Empress as wife of Theophilos
  • Theodora
    princess of Greece and Denmark (b. 1906)
  • Theodora
    Princess of Greece and Denmark (b. 1983) aka Theodora Greece, British actress
  • Theodora Cormontan
    Norwegian,American pianist
  • Theodora Keogh
    American novelist
  • Theodora Kroeber
    American anthropologist and author
  • Theodora Ungureanu
    Romanian Olympic gymnast
  • Theodora Goss
    Hungarian,American fantasy author
  • Saint Theodora of Sihla
    Orthodox saint
  • Theodora "Teddy" Williams
    daughter of English singer Robbie Williams
  • Theodora Richards
    (b. 1985) American model and daughter of musician Keith Richards
  • Theodora Seguso
    daughter of tennis players Robert Seguso and Carling Bassett Seguso
  • Theodora Isabelle Irene Flanagan (b. 2018)
    daughter of actress Kate Siegel and director Mike Flanagan

Theodora in Pop Culture

  • Theodora Lynn
    main character in "Theodora Goes Wild"
  • Theodora 'Teddy' Altman
    character on TV's "Grey's Anatomy'
  • Theodora
    character in film ''Oz the Great and Powerful''
  • Theodora
    an opera by Thomas Morell
  • Theodora
    character in anime "Negima!"
  • Theodora Dix
    character in "Chronicles of Avonlea"
  • Theodora "Thea" Atwell
    character in "The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls"
  • Theodora Rebecca "Teddy" Duncan
    character on TV's "Good Luck Charlie"
  • Theodora Dane
    character in book/film "Ballet Shoes"
  • Theodora "Theo" Crain
    character in "The Haunting of Hill House"
  • Theodora "Teddy" Reed
    character in TV series "Sisters"