Lola (English)
Where does "Lola" come from?
The name Lola originated as a Spanish diminutive of Dolores, a name reflecting the 'Sorrows' of the Virgin Mary. Over time, it underwent a process called apocope, where the final syllable was dropped from a child's version of the name to create the punchy, independent form we use today. Eventually, this Spanish moniker crossed borders to become a widely adopted given name in English.
Full etymology tree
- Lola (English), 'A female given name from Spanish.'
- borrowed Lola (Spanish), 'a diminutive of the female given name Dolores, from Old Spanish'
- derived Dolores (Spanish), 'a female given name from Old Spanish'
- derived dolores (Spanish), 'plural of dolor'
- derived María de los Dolores (Spanish)
- derived dolores (Spanish), 'plural of dolor'
- derived Dolores (Spanish), 'a female given name from Old Spanish'
- borrowed Lola (Spanish), 'a diminutive of the female given name Dolores, from Old Spanish'
Direct ancestors
Updated June 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris