Stella
Top 1000
About Stella
Stella is a name with star quality and sparkle, that manages to sound both ethereal and earthy. Celestial but not otherworldly, it lands somewhere between the popular Ella and bold Seraphina.
The name Stella was derived from stella, the Latin word for "star". It was coined by the poet, Sir Philip Sidney who used it in his 1590 sonnet collection, Astrophel and Stella, which translates literally to "the star lover and his star."
While Astrophel has remained obscure, Stella came into common usage in the 1800s. Inspired perhaps by its similarity to Ella and Esther, and by its association with the Virgin Mary, from her Catholic title, Stella Maris, it was popular in the early decades of the 20th century.
After fading in the 70s, Stella is now back and brighter than ever. Following on the heels of Gabriella and Isabella, it ranks in the US Top 50 and is given to almost 5000 babies each year. With equally astronomical Luna now making the Top 10, Stella might rise even higher.
Stella holds international appeal too and has taken shining spots on the charts in Switzerland, Sweden, Australia, Italy, and France.
The name Stella was famously bellowed by Marlon Brando in Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire, and it has proved a popular choice among celebrities, including Matt Damon, Ellen Pompeo, Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott, and Gena Lee Nolin.
Designer and animal rights activist Stella McCartney is another notable namesake, as is Stella Adler, an influential acting teacher.
If Stella is shining for you but it’s not quite the brightest star on your list, then you could consider its variants, the literary Estella, or the French Estelle. Alternatively, you might like another starry name, such as Astraea, Seren, or Izara, or something just equally celestial, like Elara, Celia, or Celeste.
Pronounced STEL-uh.
As of October 2026, Stella ranked #52 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #38 in 2018, Nameberry popularity #47.
Editor's take: The name Stella is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "star".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #66 | 4,202 | 2,352.3 |
| 2015 | #51 | 4,798 | 2,687.8 |
| 2016 | #45 | 4,933 | 2,783.8 |
| 2017 | #42 | 5,069 | 2,936.1 |
| 2018 | #38 | 5,163 | 3,035.1 |
| 2019 | #40 | 4,994 | 2,975.5 |
| 2020 | #42 | 4,667 | 2,887 |
| 2021 | #41 | 4,818 | 2,936.3 |
| 2022 | #40 | 4,845 | 2,954 |
| 2023 | #46 | 4,366 | 2,721 |
| 2024 | #49 | 4,264 | 2,631.8 |
| 2025 | #52 | 4,136 | 2,573.3 |
World rankings
Similar names
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Stella on lists
Famous Stellas
- Stella Adler
American actress and acting teacher
- Stella Dorothea Gibbons
English actress
- Estelle Caro "Stella" (Eggleston) Stevens
American actress
- Stella Nina McCartney
English fashion designer, daughter of musician Paul McCartney
- Stella Mae Parton
American singer,songwriter, sister of singer Dolly Parton
- Stella Hudgens
American actress, sister of actress Vanessa Hudgens
- Stella Huang
(born Stella Ng), Singaporean pop singer
- Stella Gonet
Scottish actress
- Stella Maessen
Dutch singer
- Stella Obasanjo
First Lady of Nigeria
- Stella Soleil
American pop singer
- Stella Tennant
English model
- Stella Vander
French singer
- Stella Cornelia
Indonesian singer
- Stella Maynes Maxwell
Northern Irish,New Zealand model
- Stella Keitel (b. 1985)
daughter of actors Harvey Keitel and Lorraine Bracco
- Stella Breeze Baker (b. 1993)
daughter of actors Simon Baker and Rebecca Rigg
- Stella del Carmen Banderas (b. 1996)
daughter of actors Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas
- Stella Ritter (b. 1998)
daughter of actors John Ritter and Amy Yasbeck
- Stella Irene August Aykroyd (b. 1998)
daughter of actors Dan Aykroyd and Donna Dixon
- Stella Busina Matthews (b. 2001)
daughter of musician Dave Matthews; twin sister Grace Anne
- Stella Street (b. 2001)
daughter of actress Elisabeth Shue
- Stella Gregg (b. 2001)
daughter of actors Clark Gregg and Jennifer Grey
- Stella Huston (b. 2003)
daughter of director Danny Huston; niece of actress Anjelica Huston
- Stella Shannon Chesnut (b. 2003)
daughter of actress Molly Shannon and artist Fritz Chesnut
- Stella Mae Vincent (b. 2004)
daughter of actress Peri Gilpin and artist Christian Vincent; twin of sister Ava Pearl Vincent
- Stella Klim (b. 2006)
daughter of swimmer Michael Klim
- Stella Rose Elizabeth Schweain (b. 2007)
daughter of singer Kristin Swinford of ZOEGirl and Ryan Schweain
- Stella Monroe Hulse (b. 2008)
daughter of actress Gena Lee Nolin and ice hockey player Cale Hulse
- Stella Doreen McDermott (b. 2009)
daughter of actors Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott
- Stella Ruby Urich (b. 2009)
daughter of TV host Kari Byron and Paul Urich
- Stella Luna Pompeo Ivery (b. 2009)
daughter of actress Ellen Pompeo
- Stella Jean Saliman (b. 2010)
daughter of actress Bree Turner and Justin Saliman
- Stella Zavala Damon (b. 2010)
daughter of actor Matt Damon
- Stella Haven Walsh (b. 2011)
daughter of actor Dylan Walsh
- Stella Alzner (b. 2014)
daughter of ice hockey player Karl Alzner
- Stella June Coleman (b. 2014)
daughter of singer Holly Williams and Chris Coleman; granddaughter of singer Hank Williams, Jr.
- Stella Star (b. 2017)
daughter of American reality television star Briana DeJesus
Stella in pop culture
- Stella Kowalski
character in Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire"
- Stella Maynard
character in the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maud Montgomery
- Stella Payne
main character in film "How Stella Got Her Groove Back"
- Stella Gibson
character on TV's "The Fall"
- Stella
the nurse in film "Rear Window"
- Stella Bonasera
character on TV's "CSI: NY"
- Stella Malone
character on TV's "Jonas"
- Stella Yamada
character in Disney Channel movie "Lemonade Mouth"
- Stella Zinman
character on TV's "How I Met Your Mother"
- Stella
character on animated series "Hey Arnold"
- Stella
character on animated series "Winx Club"
- Stella Abbott
character on TV's "Life Sentence"
- "Stella
" pseudonym of Celinda Toobad in Thomas Love Peacock's "Nightmare Abbey" (1818)
- Stella
Naylithian character in video game "Aveyond RPG"
- Stella Benicia
character in the Mara Dyer trilogy by Michelle Hodkin
- Stella DuBois
character in the book Gone Too Far by Natalie D. Richards
- Stella
Pearl's dead mother from the novel 'The Year of The Rat'
- Stella Carlin
character on 'Orange Is the New Black'
- Stella Nickleby
baby on TV's Mistresses
- Stella
lead character in the cartoon "Stella and Sam"
- Stella Samuel
character in 'The Heartbreakers' by Ali Novak
- Stella
character in the game "Minecraft: Story Mode , Season Two"
- "Stella
" children's book by Janell Cannon about the titular fruit bat
- "Stella and Sam
" children's book by Marie Louise Gay and TV series
- "Stella
" song by All Time Low
- "Bella Stella
" song by Highland
- "Stella Blue
" song by the Grateful Dead
- "Stella
" song by Ida Maria
- Stella Artois
a brand of beer
- Stella Doro
brand of packaged cookies
- Stella Rose Buckley
character on Netflix series "Insatiable"