Cordelia

Revision History

loadingDate    Editor    Change Summary
1/21/2022, 9:40 PM Mike C update #111
4/25/2021, 10:07 PM Mike C update #110
11/16/2019, 11:04 AM Mike C update #105
8/16/2017, 11:57 PM Mike C update #96
2/12/2007, 1:03 AM Mike C earliest recorded revision

Gender Feminine
Usage Literature, English
Pronounced Pron. kawr-DEE-lee-ə(English) kawr-DEEL-yə(English)

Meaning & History

From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a character from Welsh legend.

The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey's story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).