Cornelia

Feminine variation of Cornelius, Latin
"horn"

Cornelia Origin and Meaning

The name Cornelia is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "horn".

In ancient Rome, Cornelia was considered the paragon of womanly virtue, making it a handsome name with an excellent pedigree. It's rare today, so if you want a name no one else is using, somewhat reminiscent of Amelia and the Shakespearean Cordelia, Cornelia should be on your list. Cornelia's short forms might include Cora, Nelia or Nell--anything but Corny.

The name of the mother of famous second century Roman reformers, Cornelia emerged in England in the seventeenth century, probably brought in by Dutch immigrants. The painter Jan Vermeer had a daughter named Cornelia.

Cornelia has not made a mark on the U.S. popularity list since 1965--so she's more than due for reconsideration. In the meantime, it's been associated with contemporary socialite Cornelia Guest, giving the name an elite image.

# 951 in the US

Cornelia Rank in US Top 1000

# 650 on Nameberry

Cornelia Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Cornelia Popularity

Famous People Named Cornelia

  • Cornelia Maria Funke
    German novelist
  • Cornelia Otis Skinner
    American author and actress
  • Cornelia "Corrie" ten Boom
    Dutchwoman who helped Jews escape the Holocaust
  • Cornelia Vanderbilt
    daughter of American millionaire George Vanderbilt
  • Cornelia Burki
    Swiss long,distance runner
  • Cornelia Dumler
    German volleyball player
  • Cornelia Dahlgren
    Swedish singer/songwriter
  • Cornelia Frances
    English,Australian actress
  • Cornelia Hesse
    Honegger, author of Heteroptera and poet naturalist

Cornelia in Pop Culture

  • Cornelia Hale
    the Guardian of Earth in "W.I.T.C.H.," a comic book series and animated series
  • Cornelia Stanton Edwards (née Pitt)
    the aunt of Samantha Parkington and wife of Gardner Edwards in the American Girl Doll series
  • FV Cornelia Marie
    a commercial crab fishing boat formerly featured on the Discovery Channel series Deadliest Catch
  • Cornelia Bryant
    in the "Anne of Green Gables" series
  • Cornelia li Britannia
    character in the anime "Code Geass"
  • Cornelia Brown
    main character in "Love Walked In" and "Belong to Me"
  • Cornelia Goth (nee Crumplebottom)
    character in "The Sims" (1,3) video/computer games
  • Cornelia Prince Medal
    character mentioned in "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory"
  • Cornelia
    character from the video game "Final Fantasy XI"
  • Blair Cornelia Waldorf
    a main character on "Gossip Girl"
  • Cornelia Street
    a street in New York and a title of Taylor Swift's song