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At a Glance: Name: Arabella – Meaning: yielding to prayer (one of two competing theories) – Origin: Latin (disputed, possibly a variant of Annabel) – Gender: Girl – Pronunciation: air-ah-BEL-ah
Arabella is pronounced air-ah-BEL-ah, a romantic, storybook name that still reads as a classic choice for a girl. Its roots trace to Latin, though scholars are divided: some connect it to a word meaning 'yielding to prayer,' while others see it as a variant of Annabel. You may come across Arabella described as meaning 'beautiful altar' or 'beautiful eagle,' but that doesn't match either of the two leading theories on where the name actually comes from.
Meaning & Origin of Arabella
Meaning: Yielding to prayer (one of two competing theories).
Origin: Latin (disputed, possibly a variant of Annabel).
A common claim: Arabella is often listed as meaning 'beautiful altar' or 'beautiful eagle'. Actually: Neither gloss is supported by the two competing scholarly theories (Latin orabilis, 'yielding to prayer', or a variant of Annabel); 'beautiful altar/eagle' appears to be popular invention.
Source: Wiktionary, Wikipedia.
How to Pronounce Arabella
Phonetic: air-ah-BEL-ah IPA: /ɛrəˈbɛlə/
Popularity of Arabella
Arabella has been recorded in Social Security Administration data going back to 1881, reaching its highest popularity at #157 in 2017 with 1,889 babies given the name, and most recently sitting at #206 in 2024 with 1,476 babies.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration birth-name data, 1881–2024.
Make Arabella Name Art
Free printable nursery art for Arabella, pre-loaded below — pick a layout, palette, and font, then download a print-ready PNG.
Names With a Similar Story
Derived from shared style, era, and origin data (or, for names we have no style data for, a similar Social Security popularity trajectory) — not a hand-picked list.
FAQ
What does the name Arabella mean?
Yielding to prayer (one of two competing theories). (Source: Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Arabella)
How do you pronounce Arabella?
Arabella is pronounced air-ah-BEL-ah (IPA: /ɛrəˈbɛlə/).
Is Arabella a popular name right now?
Arabella peaked at #157 in 2017 and is ranked #206 as of 2024. (U.S. Social Security Administration data, 1881–2024.)
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