Meaning:
Its source is Sile, an Irish Gaelic name meaning "Blind."
Languages:
This girl's name is used in Dutch and English.
Compound Forms: Sheillynn and Sheilaleigh
Variant Forms: Shaylagh, Shaylah, Shaylla, Sheileen, Sheilia, Sheilya, Shelia, Shella, Sheyla, Shila, Shilea, Shilla and Shyla
Popularity:
The name Sheila ranked 710th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 124th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.
This name is highly rated in the 1990 U.S. Census popularity survey of all ages, but after 1960 does not appear in the state data listing the most popular baby names.
Narrative:
Sile is the Irish Gaelic translation of the Latin-derived name Celia.
The Australian slang use of Sheila as a generic name for any woman is well known to most English speakers. However, scholars believe the personal name only accidentally coincided with the development of the slang term ''shaler'' (meaning ''sheller'') into a sound-alike word.
Why were women ''shellers?'' Setting aside any possible bawdy double-meanings, perhaps the allusion was to oyster and clam shelling, a task the patriarchal early Aussies might have considered to be ''women's work.''
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