Imelda (English)

Where does "Imelda" come from?

The English female given name 'Imelda' is borrowed from Romance languages, specifically Italian and Spanish[1]. Italian 'Imelda', known as the name of a saint, corresponds to the German name 'Irmhild'[1][2]. The name ultimately traces back to Germanic roots, formed by combining Proto-Germanic '*ermunaz', meaning 'all' or 'whole', with '*hildiz', meaning 'battle'[2].

Open questions

• The original meaning and derivation of the Proto-Germanic root '*ermunaz' is debated, with traditional views reconstructing an adjective for 'huge' or 'great' and alternative theories proposing a noun meaning 'world' or 'earth'. [2] [3]

Full etymology tree

• Imelda (English), 'A female given name from the Romance languages.'
  • borrowed Imelda (Italian)
    • derived Irmhild (German)
      • compound *ermunaz (Proto-Germanic), 'world, earth'
      • compound *hildiz (Proto-Germanic), 'battle, fight'
  • borrowed Imelda (Spanish), 'a female given name'
    • borrowed Imelda (Italian)
      • derived Irmhild (German)
        • compound *ermunaz (Proto-Germanic), 'world, earth'
        • compound *hildiz (Proto-Germanic), 'battle, fight'

Ancestors

• Imelda (Spanish)

Sources

1. Imelda (English) - Wiktionary
2. Imelda (Spanish) - Wiktionary
3. ermunaz (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary

Updated October 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris