Electra

Greek
"shining, bright"

Electra Origin and Meaning

The name Electra is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "shining, bright".

Though the tragedies of the Greeks and Eugene O'Neill that used this name are filled with incest and murder, Electra is still a brilliant choice. Isabella Rossellini chose the gentler Italian verson, Elettra, for her now grown daughter.

# 1031 on Nameberry

Electra Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Electra Popularity

Famous People Named Electra

  • Electra Havemeyer WebbAmerican antiques collector; daughter of Henry Osborne Havemeyer and Louisine Elder
  • Electra Webbdaughter of Electra Havemeyer Webb
  • Electra Collins DorenAmerican suffragist and library scientist
  • Electra Niarchos (b. 1995)daughter of Greek shipping heir Philip Niarchos and Victoria Guinness
  • Carmen ElectraAmerican actress
  • Anna Michaela Ebba Electra von HausswolffSwedish singer, pianist, organist and songwriter.

Electra in Pop Culture

  • Electraprincess of Argos in Greek mythology, who plotted to kill her mother Clytemnestra as revenge for the murder of her father Agamemnon
  • Electra Complexfemale equivalent of an Oedipal Complex
  • "Mourning Becomes Electra" play cycle by Eugene O'Neill
  • "Electra Heart" album by Marina and the Diamonds, inspired by her alter ego Electra
  • Electrakitten in musical "Cats"
  • Electra the Electric Traincharacter in musical "Starlight Express"
  • ElectraCathy's dog from the comic strip "Cathy"
  • Electraprotagonist of the movie Love by Gaspar Noe.