Selma

German
"godly helmet"

Selma Origin and Meaning

The name Selma is a girl's name of German origin meaning "godly helmet".

Selma has recently been given a more youthful spin via actresses Selma Blair and Salma Hayek. But while Selma has not yet become popular again in the US, it is widely used in both Sweden and Norway.

Selma won a Nobel Prize via Swedish author Selma Lagerlof, the first woman to win for literature. And the city of Selma, Alabama is famous as the starting point for the Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches, led by Dr Martin Luther King Jr. The 2014 film Selma, based on the marches, gave the name a slight boost in the same year.

# 947 in the US

Selma Rank in US Top 1000

Selma Popularity

Famous People Named Selma

  • Selma Ottilia Lovisa LagerlöfSwedish author; 1st woman to win Literature Nobel Prize
  • Selma AdzemBosnian singer
  • Selma BajramiAlbanian,Bosnian pop star
  • Selma BlairAmerican actress
  • Selma BjörnsdóttirIcelandic singer
  • Selma ErgecTurkish,German actress, beauty queen, & doctor
  • Selma HarringtonBosnian,Irish architect & designer
  • Selma KurzAustrian opera singer
  • Selma MekicBosnian TV host
  • Selma YagciTurkish boxer
  • Selma DiamondAmerican actress

Selma in Pop Culture

  • Selma Bouviercharacter on "The Simpsons;" twin of sister Patty
  • Selma Maletcharacter in Mary A. Dickens' "Cross Currents"
  • Selmacharacter in Kenize Mourad's "Regards from the Dead Princess"
  • Selmacharacter on "The Crazy, Confused & Normal"
  • Selma Ježkovámain character in the musical "Dancer in the Dark"
  • Selma St. Georgecharacter in Stephen King's Dolores Claiborne
  • Selma QuicklyCharacter in the Nanny McPhee series
  • Selmacity in Alabama
  • "Selma" 2014 film about the civil rights march in Selma, Alabama