Camilla

Camilla is a female given name of Latin origin, derived from the Roman goddess Camillus. It was popularized in England by Queen Consort Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall (born 1947), who married Prince Charles in 2005.

The given name has been used since at least the 16th century and appeared as one of the top 300 names for newborn girls in England and Wales during 2014-2018. The popularity of this name peaked around 1890 when it reached rank 22 out of all baby girl’s names but had dropped to rank 78 by 2018. In Scotland, where Scottish Gaelic forms are more common than English versions, Camille is much more frequent; it ranked 44th most popular there during that same time period compared to 79th place for its English form.

In literature, ‘Camilla’ appears several times: Virgil gave this name to one of his characters – an Amazon warrior queen – in Aeneid; Jane Austen named her heroine with this title in her novel Lady Susan (1794); Charlotte Bronte referred to some minor characters with this label throughout Villette (1853). Other notable bearers include Italian opera singer Marietta Cambini-Sciaccaluga d’Oria della Robbia known professionally as ‘La Cambiale di Matrimonio’, Spanish fashion designer Cristina Ortiz Rodríguez also known under pseudonym ‘Cristobal’ or American actress Cameron Diaz born Cameron Michelle Diaz whose stage surname came from her middle name ‘Michelle’.