| Zelda | Hildegard | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Battle (grey battle-maid) | Battle guard |
| Origin | germanic | germanic |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | ZEL-duh | HIL-duh-gard |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 0 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2020 (526) | 1915 (81) |
| In 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Zelda | Hildegard |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 2,561 | 94 |
| 2010s | 2,889 | 52 |
| 2000s | 391 | 0 |
| 1990s | 144 | 0 |
| 1980s | 154 | 0 |
| 1970s | 305 | 6 |
| 1960s | 1,265 | 42 |
| 1950s | 1,160 | 93 |
| 1940s | 1,074 | 108 |
| 1930s | 1,650 | 276 |
| 1920s | 2,376 | 436 |
| 1910s | 1,854 | 483 |
| 1900s | 595 | 219 |
| 1890s | 254 | 130 |
| 1880s | 62 | 6 |
Commonly a short form of Griselda, from Germanic 'gris' (grey) and 'hild' (battle). A separate Yiddish name Zelda meaning roughly 'blessed/happy' also exists, so the battle sense specifically traces to the Griselda line.
From Germanic 'hild' (battle) and 'gard' (enclosure, protection), roughly 'protector in battle'. Borne by the 12th-century abbess and polymath Hildegard of Bingen.
Zelda and Hildegard are given to a similar number of US babies today.
Zelda means Battle (grey battle-maid) (germanic origin), while Hildegard means Battle guard (germanic origin).
In US records, Zelda first appears in 0 and Hildegard in 0, so Zelda has the longer recorded history.