Cordelia
Cordelia is a feminine given name. It was borne by the tragic heroine of Shakespeare's King Lear (1606), a character based on the legendary queen Cordelia. The name is of uncertain origin.
Meaning & Origin of Cordelia
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Cordelia is a feminine given name. It was borne by the tragic heroine of Shakespeare's King Lear (1606), a character based on the legendary queen Cordelia. The name is of uncertain origin.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Cordelia
Cordelia first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 58 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2015, when 286 Cordelias were born — ranking #949 that year. As of 2026, Cordelia ranks #1,095 for baby girls with 222 births, holding steady (-5%). In total, more than 13K Cordelias have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Cordelia
Phonetically similar names — useful when Cordelia is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Cordelia
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About the name Cordelia
Cordelia is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 13K births in the dataset. Cordelia's peak popularity came in 2015 when it ranked #204. Use the chart and map above to compare Cordelia's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2015 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "C" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.