Elissa means God's oath or wanderer — from the Hebrew Elizabeth or the Phoenician name for Queen Dido. Elissa/Dido founded Carthage — the most powerful city in the ancient Mediterranean. She drew the most clever boundary in history: she cut a bull's hide into strips to encircle an entire hill. Three syllables of Carthage-founding, the cleverest real-estate deal, and the queen who tricked a king with a bull's hide.
Phoenician Elissa (wanderer) or Hebrew Elizabeth→Elissa / Dido of Carthage
1
Modern American roots
Elissa is a Phoenician name meaning wanderer — the legendary name of Queen Dido who founded Carthage. She cut a bull's hide into thin strips to encircle an entire hill, claiming maximum land.
2
First recorded
Earliest known use: Phoenician; Dido/Elissa founded Carthage (c. 814 BC).
3
Today
Elissa remains a beloved choice, ranking #1368 in the US. 17,924 babies have been named Elissa since 1914.
◈ Sources: Behind the Name, Oxford Dictionary of First Names, SSA data
◆
How popular is Elissa?
1979peak year
Today, Elissa is rarely chosen — ranked well outside the top 1,000 (around #1368), with only about 167 babies given the name per year. But it wasn't always this way. At its peak in 1979, 408 babies were given the name (ranked #496 nationally). Its strongest stretch was the 1980s. Elissa's usage has held roughly steady recently. In all, around 17,924 babies have been registered as Elissa since 1880.
Year-by-year registrations1880–2024 · U.S. Social Security data
Elissa's Life Path 8 is the achiever's number — Carthage-level achievement. People named Elissa tend to be clever, classical, and gifted at founding cities with a bull's hide.
Every name has a homeland. Discover beautiful girl names rooted in cultures from around the world — each with full meanings, origin stories and pronunciation.