Revision History

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4/23/2024, 9:35 PM Mike C update #115
5/29/2020, 9:30 PM Mike C update #108
2/4/2020, 9:06 PM Mike C update #107
11/16/2019, 11:04 AM Mike C update #105
4/16/2019, 9:13 PM Mike C update #103
12/8/2017, 12:41 PM Mike C update #97
2/12/2007, 1:03 AM Mike C earliest recorded revision

Gender Feminine
Scripts Μέλισσα(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced Pron. /mə.ˈlɪs.ə/(English) /mé.lis.sa/(Classical Greek)

Meaning & History

Means "bee" in Greek. In Greek mythology this was the name of a daughter of Procles, as well as an epithet of various Greek nymphs and priestesses. According to the early Christian writer Lactantius [2] this was the name of the sister of the nymph Amalthea, with whom she cared for the young Zeus. Later it appears in Ludovico Ariosto's 1532 poem Orlando Furioso [3] belonging to the fairy who helps Ruggiero escape from the witch Alcina. As an English given name, Melissa has been used since the 18th century.