Clelia

Meaning: (Heaven, Sky, Moon, Light, Shine, Fame, associated with the root of the verb cluere "to have renown, fame," and the name therefore means "illustrious, famous." From Greek Kleio. Modern Italian form of Cloelia, the feminine form of Cloelius, a Roman family name. A feisty heroine from legendary Roman history who after having been given by the Romans to the Etruscans as a hostage, escaped by swimming the River Tiber back to Rome. She was returned, but out of admiration, the Etruscans released her along with other hostages. French novelist Mlle. de Scudéry (17th-century) retold her story. The name was borne by Saint Clelia Barbieri (19th century), patron saint of those mocked for their faith.)

Origin: (Italian, Ancient Roman, Old Greek)

Pronunciation: (KLEH-lee-ə, KLey-LIY-aa- or KLey-LYAH, kle-lee-ah)

Gender: Female

I totally forget where I heard or saw this. I should have written it down as to where I saw it but unfortunately I didn’t. It sort of looks like someone was going for Cleo or Chloe but went another direction with it. The meanings are beautiful and the name spelling has an overall unique rare look in the modern era at least. It seems pretty and for some reason it seems a bit preppy to me. It is also an interesting and cool history of the variant names. The pronunciation is also easier than I thought when I was able to see the pronunciation. If you see the name first it may take a while to hit on the correct pronunciation. The pronunciation’s also rolls off the tongue and the roof of ones mouth interestingly.