Julia is a feminine form of the masculine name Julius, which was originally a Roman family name and may be of Greek origin. It is also related to the Roman god Jupiter. One of the most famous members of the family was GaiusJuliusCaesar.
What does the name Julia mean?
Julia means “of the family of the Julii” and “dedicated to Jupiter” or “devoted to Jove” (from Latin “Iovilius”). Besides, Julia means “downy-bearded” or “corn sheaf” (from ancient Greek “íoulos/ἴουλος”).
Variants of the name Julia
Julia is one of the classic names and has many different spellings, for example Iulia, Julja, Júlia or Yulia. The name is used in some different language areas and has variants there, such as Giulia in Italian or Julika in Slavic.
Nicknames and middle names
Suitable nicknames for your little Julia could be July or Jules. If you want to choose a similar name, there are other options like Juliette or Julie. Possible combinations with matching middle names are: Julia Sophie, Julia Kylie, Julia Brittany, Julia Marie or Julia Emilia.
Famous women named Julia
A frontrunner of famous Julias is undoubtedly Julia Roberts. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1967, Julia comes from an acting family, but the actress had to work for her own fame. She had her first bigger role in the movie “Satisfaction (Girls of Summer)” in 1988. Julia then became a superstar at the end of the eighties with the romantic comedy “Pretty Woman” alongside Richard Gere. In 1999, the dream movie couple Roberts and Gere reunited to make the equally successful film “Runaway Bride”. A highlight in Julia’s career is her appearance in the film “Erin Brockovich” (2000), for which she received a record fee of 20 million euros and was also awarded an Oscar. With her numerous successes, Julia Roberts is now one of the grand dames of Hollywood.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is a New York born actress and comedian. The 1961 born Julia started her career as the youngest ever cast member of the comedy show “Saturday Night Live“. Julia was also part of many more comedy shows and movies, for example “Veep” from 2012 to 2019. She was awarded with numerous trophies for her work. In private, Julia is married to actor Brad Hall and the couple has two sons.
Julia as a name in literature
The name Julia is associated with the tragedy Romeo and Juliet, which William Shakespeare first printed in 1597, because in languages other than English, the couple is named “Romeo and Julia”. The original name of the play was “The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet“. The story surrounding the most famous lovers in history has been staged in the theater and filmed countless times. A well-known modern film adaptation was made in 1996 by director Baz Luhrmann, starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Romeo and Claire Danes as Juliet. A slightly different interpretation is the film “Letters to Juliet“ (2010), starring Amanda Seyfried. It is about a young American woman who travels to Verona (the city where “Romeo and Juliet is predominantly set) and discovers that there is a wall to which many women from all over the world attach letters to Juliet. In the letters they ask Juliet for her advice in love matters. The young woman tracks down the letters and an exciting journey through all of Italy develops. The “Club di Giulietta“ really exists. It is a small organization in Verona, where the employees answer every letter sent to Julia (or Juliet) by handwriting.
Based on the frequency of positive ratings, we can analyze how popular names are in different countries. The name Julia is currently ranked #76 on the name leaderboard. It is one of the most popular baby names.
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