Tallula was an old Celtic saint; Tallulah Bankhead once quipped that she was “pure as the driven slush.”  And so today’s name is a bad girl/good girl split – either a classic and underused choice for a wee lass or a wildly glamorous and daring name for a future star.  

Regardless, it’s familiar thanks to starbabies like Tallula Fyfe Dempsey (daughter of Grey’s Anatomy actor Patrick Dempsey) and Tallulah Belle Willis (daughter of actors Bruce Willis and Demi Moore.)

It’s an interesting name.  While St. Tallula is mentioned here and there, she does not make the definitive list on www.catholic.org.  But it’s clearly Gaelic in origin – Tuilelaith – and comes from words that mean “abundance” and “woman” or possibly “princess.”

Believe it or not, there is a second derivation for this deliciously quirky choice.  Tallulah is a Choctaw expression meaning “leaping waters.”  In Georgia, several bodies of water bear this name.  But the best known Tallulah lit up the silver screen and the London stage in the 1930s and 40s.  She was a scandalous figure, with constant talk of her romantic attachments, politics leanings and exploits at parties.  

Since she was Alabama-born, and was named after her grandmother, it’s safe to say that Miss Bankhead was named after the Choctaw term.  After all, she was far too scandalous a figure to be associated with sainthood.

Neither spelling has ever charted in the Top 1000.  But with glamourpuss choices like Ava and Harlow, Audrey and Natalie big for baby girls, it’s easy to see adventurous parents discovering this name.

As for nicknames, Lula, Lulu and Lally all seem like possibilities.

If your surname is simple, and you want a name that is feminine but distinctive, Tallulah is one to consider.