Clarinda

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Clarinda

Gender: Feminine
Language: English
Etymology:
Clarinda is a name invented in 1596 by Edmund Spenser for The Faerie Queen. It is apparently the Latin name Clara (“bright”) added to the popular feminine ending “inda” that was in vogue at the time. He may have been influenced by the Italian name Clorinda, also a literary named created by Torquato Tasso out of the Greek name Cloris.

History:
Invented by Edmund Spenser in 1596, Clarinda was a literary name at first; it was also found in The Beau’s Duel in 1703 and is also found in the poems of Robert Burns (1759-1796). It was common for a time in the 18th and early-to-mid 19th centuries.

Please see Clara for more information.

Pronunciation: clair-inn-dah.

Alternates: Clarenda.

Famous Bearers:
Places:
Clarinda
Iowa.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.001 % named Clarinda
0.001 % named Clorinda

Popularity of Clarinda:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1850: 332nd most popular.
1875: 603rd most popular.
1880: 679th most popular.
1881-1882: N/A
1883: 817th most popular.
1884: 686th most popular.
1885: N/A
1886: 897th most popular.
1887-1896: N/A
1897: 867th most popular.
1898-2004: N/A

Selected Sources:
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering, 1999
A Dictionary of First Names, Hanks and Hodges, 1990
The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, Withycombe, 1977, 3rd ed.

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 (www.ssa.gov) - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880, and other information (it is available on-line at www.familysearch.org)