The story behind Selena
Either a variant of Selina, from Latin Caelīna (“heavenly”, from caelum (“sky, heaven”)), or from Selene, the Ancient Greek goddess of the moon.
Other language forms and explanations (2)
Serbo-Croatian entry
From Ancient Greek Σελήνη (Selḗnē).
Tagalog entry
Borrowed from English Selena.
Pronunciation
General-American: /səˈlinə/
Regional pronunciation variants
- Received-Pronunciation: /sɪˈliːnə/
- Serbo-Croatian: /sěleːna/
- Tagalog; Standard-Tagalog: /seˈlina/
- Tagalog; Standard-Tagalog: [sɛˈliː.n̪ɐ]
Popularity
Selena ranked #268 in US for 2025.
Source: SSA national baby names
Names Similar to Selena
Sabrina
Popularity likely inspired from Arabic صَابْرِينَا (ṣābrīnā) based on Arabic root ص ب ر (ṣ b r), folk etymologized form of earlier سَابْرِينَا (sābrīnā) (now mostly limited to…
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Safira
Borrowed from Italian Saffira, from Ancient Greek Σαπφειρη (Sappheirē), likely from σάπφειρος (sáppheiros).
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Salomea
Learned borrowing from Latin Salomea, from Ancient Greek Σαλώμη (Salṓmē), from Biblical Hebrew שְׁלוֹמִית.
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Samanta
a female given name from English, equivalent to English Samantha
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Samantha
It was recorded in the 17th century in England. Most probably a feminine form of Samuel, possibly influenced by Anthea. Other suggestions include Aramaic ܫܡܥܢܬܐ (šemʿanta,…
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Sapphira
Borrowed from Ancient Greek Σαπφειρη (Sappheirē).
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 3 syllables
- Ending
- ends A
- same syllable count
- similar length
Middle Names for Selena
Bairbre
From Latin Barbara (name of a legendary saint), feminine form of barbarus, from Ancient Greek βάρβαρος (bárbaros, “strange, foreign”). Cognate with Scottish Gaelic Barabal and…
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 1 syllable
- Ending
- ends E
- balanced syllable contrast
- good length contrast
Bartolomej
Derived from Ancient Greek Βαρθολομαῖος (Bartholomaîos).
- Gender
- masculine
- Syllables
- 4 syllables
- Ending
- ends J
- balanced syllable contrast
- good length contrast
Bartoloměj
Inherited from Old Czech Bartoloměj.
- Gender
- masculine
- Syllables
- 4 syllables
- Ending
- ends J
- balanced syllable contrast
- good length contrast
Sibling Names for Selena
Aaron
From Latin Aaron, from Ancient Greek Ἀαρών (Aarṓn), from Hebrew אַהֲרֹן (ʾAhărōn), of unknown meaning, possibly meaning “bearer of martyrs”, or perhaps also, or instead,…
- Gender
- masculine
- Syllables
- 2 syllables
- Ending
- ends N
- shared origin connection
- balanced name length
Aarón
a male given name from Latin [in turn from Ancient Greek, in turn from Hebrew], equivalent to English Aaron
- Gender
- masculine
- Syllables
- 2 syllables
- Ending
- ends N
- shared origin connection
- balanced name length
Abby
Borrowed from English Abby in the 20th century. Borrowed from English Abby.
- Gender
- feminine
- Syllables
- 2 syllables
- Ending
- ends Y
- shared origin connection
- balanced name length