First the heroine of Sir Walter Scott's 1822 novel The Pirate, then a glamorous 1940s debutante, then the troubled twin on Beverly Hills 90210, and now fading in favor of more modern Brenna, Briana, and Bryn. Much more likely to be worn by a mother or grandmother these days. The song "Brenda's Got a Baby" was late rap megastar Tupac's debut single.

Derived from the Old German elements ekka "edge, blade" and hart "hard, firm, brave, hardy". Eckhart Tolle is a German writer, and it is also found as a surname.