Gender: Feminine
Usage: Literature, English
Meaning
From Cordeilla, a name appearing in the 12th-century chronicles [1] of Geoffrey of Monmouth, borne by the youngest of the three daughters of King Leir and the only one to remain loyal to her father. Geoffrey possibly based her name on that of Creiddylad, a daughter of Lludd Llaw Eraint in the early Arthurian tale Culhwch and Olwen. This Welsh name is of uncertain meaning.The spelling was later altered to Cordelia when Geoffrey’s story was adapted by others, including Edmund Spenser in his poem The Faerie Queene (1590) and Shakespeare in his tragedy King Lear (1606).