We’ll admit it. We hear this name and think “mad scene.” But could there be more to this attractive moniker than disheveled locks, a white dress and a fistful of flowers?
Thanks to Natalie for suggesting today’s Name of the Day: Ophelia.
Nearly everyone knows something about William Shakespeare’s Hamlet, if only famous snippets like “To thine own self be true” and “Double, double, toil and trouble.” It’s also common knowledge that Ophelia is the ill-fated girlfriend of the Prince of Denmark.
The Bard apparently invented her name, as it does appear in the historical record prior to the play. The origin, however, is clearly Greek. Ophelos means help or aid; ophelein is the verb form.
And Ophelia needed a lot of help, indeed. Her story, which ends with a drowning, is one of a sheltered and innocent girl. She’s been subject to much literary analysis and artistic interpretation. There’s even a theory that Shakespeare based the character’s death on the accidental drowning of a young woman in the Avon River. That tragic miss, however, was known as Katherine.
She’s been painted by artists, referenced in novels and ultimately became the poster child for adolescent girl angst in Mary Pipher’s 1994 bestseller Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Selves of Adolescent Girls. We might not know the play’s original text, but we’re well aware that she was roughly treated by Hamlet, no paragon of sanity himself. Culturally, the name Ophelia speaks volumes – about the hazards of love, the nature of young women, romantic ideals about death and, of course, depictions of insanity.
Nonetheless, Ophelia was a perfectly acceptable name in the US for decades. In 1880, the first year the Social Security Administration compiled data on given names, Ophelia ranked #236. She stayed in the 200s and 300s until the late 1920s, then dropped steadily. 1958 marks her last appearance in the Top 1000, and she hasn’t been back since.
In fact, back when Harriet Beecher Stowe penned Uncle Tom’s Cabin, the story included a mature, adult Ophelia who would evolve and change her opinions over the course of the book. Tubman’s Ophelia has nothing in common with her literary antecedent.
So why would this pretty and appealing name fall so decidedly out of use, even as Shakespearean names for girls like Jessica and Juliet became quite common?
Our best guess is that for most of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Ophelia was just that – a pretty name from literature, easily separated from the character’s actions. But as movie adaptations became popular and more students completed high school, complete with required reading, we suspect that modern parents were more likely to associate the name with the tragic young woman, and shy away from Ophelia.
That’s only a guess, and in fact, the 1948 Hamlet - starring Sir Laurence Olivier in the title role and Jean Simmons in an Oscar-nominated performance as our girl – seems to have given the name a tiny boost, briefly reversing Ophelia’s decline.
There’s also the Spanish and Italian variant, Ofelia and a few references to a Saint Ofelia of Denmark, explaining why the name is also sometimes heard in Scandinavia. While we could not substantiate the saint’s story – perhaps she wears another name in official church records – she’s a popular figure among gamers, appearing in the mythology of Warhammer. Of course, if your native tongue is not English, the link between the name and all of those negative associations is far easier to ignore. Like Ophelia, she appeared in the Top 1000 in the US until the 1950s.
Today it’s a tempting choice. She’d fit right in with Olivia, Gabriella and Samantha. But we suspect that this would be a tough one to wear through the teenage years. And yet, an intrepid parent could certainly resuscitate this tragic moniker, perhaps reserving Lia as a nickname to lighten the formal name’s baggage. And, of course, if your heritage is Italian, Spanish or Scandinavian, the spelling Ofelia puts some distance between literary tragedy and your darling daughter.
Just stumbled across your site – what a wonderful collection of names!
I love Ophelia and think it could work well. The Hamlet connection doesn’t bother me as much as the lack of good nicknames – I do like the suggestion of Lia (certainly better than “Ophy” or anything so graceless), but would she get lost amongst the Leahs and Lilys? I think this would be great in the middle name slot to give it some use but avoid practical problems.
(One little literature-nerd note: “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe, not Harriet Tubman).
Thanks for these great names!
lol, I’m one of those rare American Ofelias, and I’ve always liked that my name is unusual, although virtually no one could spell it properly or distinguish it from Olivia when I was growing up, and yet they NEVER had any trouble associating me with the Shakespeare character either! I’ve tried to go with the nickname Fi, and that seems to go over pretty well, although people have tried to foist “Ofie” on me, much to my chagrin!
Maybe “Pan’s Labrynth” will help Ofelia (Ophelia in English) rise again? It’s a gorgeous fairytale-ish movie and the heroine is, of course, Ofelia. I think the general pronunciation is what really killed Ophelia. Oh-feel-ya just isn’t particularly pleasant whichever way you approach it.
I’ve always said oh-FEL-ee-ah myself, Even got into a huge fight with my Sophmore English teacher over the pronunciation and won. Oh-FEL-ee-ah is so much more pleasant to hear(and say).
I am starting to see Ophelia pop up as a middle somewhat often online in the forums. And it’s only a matter of time before it goes from middle to first. I think It’s got such a lovely sound, Why not use it? A pretty name is easier to say a thousand times a day than an ugly one!
Funny you should pick up on the big difference that subtle pronunciation change makes! Being an Ofelia myself, it always makes me feel more appreciated by people if they pronounce my name “Oh-FEEL-EE-AH” instead of just slurring out “Oh-feel-yah” I like standing out from the crowd, but it would be nice to see some more positive portrayals of my name.
I’ve always said Ophelia as oh-FEEL-ee-ah, and Ofelia as oh-FEL-ee-ah. I love the spelling Ophelia, but the sound of Ofelia. I think it is totally going to become a hot name. It has that trendy O, and is very similar to Olivia.
I agree that we’re about to see Ophelia skyrocket. Lola, I’ll bet you 9 out of 10 of those online Ophelias we’re seeing are little oh-FEEL-yahs and not oh-FEL-ee-ahs. Nevertheless, while the Shakespearean associations would stop me from using it, it’s gorgeous to hear, say, and look at. And yes, she will fit right in with Olivia, Isabella, and Amelia. A similar pretty underused name without the connotations is Aurelia. I have no idea why this name isn’t more prevalent. I could really see Ophelia, Aurelia, Arabella and Isadora taking over their more common counterparts.
I too thought of Pan’s Labyrinth immediately, but couldn’t remember if it was the character or the actress’ name. Turns out, the actress is named Ivana.
Katharine – welcome. And thank you for catching my Harriet flub!
Funny, I didn’t think of this one as having a pronunciation challenge, but sure enough, it’s there. I’ve always assumed that the four-syllable oh-FEEL-ee-ah is the correct pronunciation, and that the shorter oh-FEEL-yah was mostly a Bart Simpson prank call convenience.
While normally I have a hard time with parents insisting on a very specific pronunciation for their child’s name – how many ON-drey-ahs go through life correcting those who say an-DREE-ah? – I could break the rule for this one. Lola, *love* your thought about oh-FEL-ee-ah.
I haven’t see Pan’s Labyrinth – am adding it to my Netflix cue right now – but is that closer to the Spanish pronunciation? If so, I’d argue that Ofelia is the one to embrace, both for the distance from Hamlet and that lovely sound.
Elisabeth, you’re right about Aurelia. Especially with Arianna so hot, it seems like a logical discovery. I suppose it’s being overlooked in favor of Aurora – at #317 last year – which gets a boost from the Disney Princess association. But I’m hearing Aurelia at least considered on some name forum posts, so she might be discovered before long.
Indeed, Oh-FEEl-ya is the most common pronuncation. oh-FEEL-ee-yah might slide by as well. But I know I fight an uphill battle alone for oh-FEL-(ee)-yah. I can deal.
I’m hoping Pan’s Labrynth gives a boost to Ofelia/Ophelia, it’s so pretty and the heroine is so endearing. It should definitely be on your redbox or netflix list.
I too have been seeing Aurelia around recent;y and think it’s absolutely poised for a takeoff. Maybe a takeoff of modest proportions but still… something!
It’s not the Shakespeare connotations but the O-feel-ya pronouciation that put me off! That said, it is magnificent and I agree would sit very well with Sophia, Amelia, Isabella and co.
I love the name Ophelia! But then again, during one particularly stressful bout of college final exams, I wandered dazedly around my apartment quoting lines from Ophelia’s mad scene (and frightening my roommates in the process). It is a great Olivia-alternative, and for slightly less daring parents, it would make a lovely middle name — I think combinations like Margaret Ophelia, Katherine Ophelia, and Daisy Ophelia are quite charming.
(I’ll be a literature nerd, too. “Double, double, toil and trouble,” is from Macbeth, not Hamlet.)
Heck, Emmy Jo, you’re right! That’s what I get for being overconfident in my Shakespearean references and not looking them up.
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My daughter’s name is Ophelia and although it was hard to shake the Hamlet reference, I think the name is unique without being trendy. I wanted to give her a name that would never be too popular so it would never be unpopular. It was also important for me to give her a name that she would grow into. For example, Lexi is cute when you’re 5 but, in my opinion, not when your 32.
I happen to love the name Ophelia, adore it even. I really don’t care about the pronounciation, be it Oh-FEEL-yah or Oh-FEL-ee-yah, but I think, at times, that the latter can get a little bulky at times. Lea is a pretty nice nickname, but I agree it could get lost in all the generic names. When I’m old enough to have kids, that will absolutely be one of my kids names haha (I’m near 16 right now).
The Shakespeare reference is actually what drew me to the name, because Hamlet is one of my favorite plays, and Ophelia is a great character, and a beautiful character, despite her tragic, romanticist ending. I also think that, although some shakespeare names have become famous, this name has gotten lost as one of the most beautiful names (I’m also a fan of Rosalind and Julietta, as well as Luciana – in As You Like It, Measure For Measure, and The Comedy of Errors, respectively) in Shakespeares works. It’s uniqueness is what makes it special, and I think being traced back to such a tragic, beautiful, famous literary heroine.
Honestly, I would much rather have Ophelia become more popular than Juliet, because, although both heroines met tragic ends, Ophelia’s events leading to her sinking into madness follow a more understandable pattern – her brother was going crazy himself, her father was murdered by her lover, and she was spurned by him who was most likely her husband; while juliet can be today viewed as a girl who got too caught up in the romance of a moment, a normal teenager who overreacted.
and Yeah, when I saw the article, I was prepared to correct you as well on the “double double, toil and trouble” bit, because I am kind of a shakespeare snob myself, and am currently doing Macbeth with my Shakespeare theater group (nationally acclaimed haha, sorry done bragging my little bit
)
but back to the point, Ophelia is extremely under-rated
I adore this name! I also like Aurelia, it was actually what my brother’s name would’ve been if he were a girl and if my parents had let me name him
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Anyway, I like both pronunciations (Oh-FEEL-ee-yah and Oh-FELL-ee-yah) of the name. A lot of Shakespeare’s names are pretty, like this one, and Alice, Celia, Cassandra, Rosaline and Valeria. Ophelia is also on my shortlist.
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My sister-in-law in portuguese and her name is Ofélia. Its pronounced Oh-fell-ia, with stress over the “fell” part. I love is, classy beautiful name.
That’s a truly stunning pronunciation!
My grandmother’s name is Ofelia (pronounced oh-FEL-ee-a) and I’ve always considered it for a possible name for a future daughter. Her nickname is Fela, (pronounced FEH-la), which I like and find preferable to “Lia”.