Meaning: Its source is a Latin expression meaning "Star."

In Italian, this name is spelled with an accent -- Stélla.

Languages: This girl's name is used in English and Italian.

Variant Forms: Estella, Sidra and Stellina

Non-English Forms: Stela

Popularity: The name Stella ranked 528th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 247th 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: Sir Philip Sidney (1554-1586) introduced the use of this Latin word as an English name in his sonnet sequence Astrophel and Stella.

Sydney also invented the name Pamela for the shepherdess-heroine of one of his pastoral poems.