Ursula

See also: Úrsula, Uršula, and Uršuľa

English

Etymology

From Latin Ursula, the name of a fourth century saint.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɜː(ɹ).sjʊ.lə/, /ˈɜː(ɹ).ʃʊ.lə/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɝ.sə.lə/

Proper noun

Ursula

1. A female given name from Latin.
   • 1598–1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “Much Adoe about Nothing”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, (please specify the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals)]:
     :Scene I:

     Whisper her ear, and tell her, I and Ursula / Walk in the orchard, and our whole discourse / Is all of her;

   • 1857 Dinah Craik, John Halifax, Gentleman, Chapter III:

     "Is her name Ursula?" And I called to mind the little girl who had tried to give some bread to the hungry John Halifax, and whose cry of pain we heard as the door shut upon her. Poor little lady! how sorry I was.

Derived terms

• Ursulian
• Ursuline

Translations

female given name

• Catalan: Úrsula f
• Czech: Uršula (cs), Voršila (cs) f
• Esperanto: Ursula
• Estonian: Ursula
• French: Ursule (fr) f
• German: Ursula (de) f
• Greek: Ούρσουλα (el) f (Oúrsoula), Ουρσούλα (el) f (Oursoúla)
• Hungarian: Orsolya (hu)
• Irish: Ursula f
• Italian: Orsola (it), Ursula (it)
• Japanese: ウルスラ (Urusura), アーシュラ (Āshura)
• Lithuanian: Uršulė
• Polish: Urszula (pl)
• Portuguese: Úrsula (pt) f
• Romansch: Uorschla f
• Russian: Урсу́ла (ru) m (Ursúla)
• Slovak: Uršuľa f
• Slovene: Urška
• Sorbian:

  Upper Sorbian: Wórša (hsb) f

• Spanish: Úrsula (es)
• Ukrainian: Урсула f (Ursula)
• Vietnamese: U-xu-la
• Welsh: Wrswla f

Estonian

Etymology

From Latin Ursula.

Proper noun

Ursula

1. a female given name

Finnish

Etymology

From Latin Ursula.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈursulɑ/, [ˈurs̠ulɑ̝]
• Rhymes: -ursulɑ
• Hyphenation^(key): Ur‧su‧la

Proper noun

Ursula

1. a female given name
   • 1961, Maria Partanen., Valkeat talot, WSOY, page 84:

     Ja kaikki tekivät ehdotuksia. Minäkin olisin halunnut oikein kauniin nimen vauvalle mutta en saanut sitä sanotuksi, kukaan ei kysynyt minulta. Ja äiti sanoi:
     —Pannaankos Ursula Genoveva.
     Kaikki nauroivat mutta minun sydämessä tuntui ihan tuska. Hädissäni minä juoksin makuukamariin äidin sängyn alle ja rukoilin: hyvä Jumala elä anna niiden antaa vauvalle sellasta nimmee. Minä ihan itkin: Ursula Genoveva. Se oli kauhea, se oli ihan julma hyi se oli inhottava nimi.

     And everybody suggested names. I would've liked the baby to get a beautiful name too, but I didn't get to say it, as nobody asked me. The mother said::
     —Should we go with Ursula Genoveva.
     Everyone laughed, but my heart was filled with anguish. I ran alarmed to the bedroom under mother's bed and prayed: dear God, don't let them give a name like that to the baby. I was weeping: Ursula Genoveva. It was terrible, so cruel, such a disgusting name.

Declension

Inflection of Ursula (Kotus type 12/kulkija, no gradation)
nominative		Ursula	Ursulat
genitive		Ursulan	Ursuloiden Ursuloitten
partitive		Ursulaa	Ursuloita
illative		Ursulaan	Ursuloihin
		singular	plural
nominative		Ursula	Ursulat
accusative	nom.	Ursula	Ursulat
	gen.	Ursulan
genitive		Ursulan	Ursuloiden Ursuloitten Ursulain rare
partitive		Ursulaa	Ursuloita
inessive		Ursulassa	Ursuloissa
elative		Ursulasta	Ursuloista
illative		Ursulaan	Ursuloihin
adessive		Ursulalla	Ursuloilla
ablative		Ursulalta	Ursuloilta
allative		Ursulalle	Ursuloille
essive		Ursulana	Ursuloina
translative		Ursulaksi	Ursuloiksi
abessive		Ursulatta	Ursuloitta
instructive		—	Ursuloin
comitative		See the possessive forms below.

Possessive forms of Ursula (Kotus type 12/kulkija, no gradation)

first-person singular possessor singular plural nominative Ursulani Ursulani accusative nom. Ursulani Ursulani gen. Ursulani genitive Ursulani Ursuloideni Ursuloitteni Ursulaini rare partitive Ursulaani Ursuloitani inessive Ursulassani Ursuloissani elative Ursulastani Ursuloistani illative Ursulaani Ursuloihini adessive Ursulallani Ursuloillani ablative Ursulaltani Ursuloiltani allative Ursulalleni Ursuloilleni essive Ursulanani Ursuloinani translative Ursulakseni Ursuloikseni abessive Ursulattani Ursuloittani instructive — — comitative — Ursuloineni second-person singular possessor singular plural nominative Ursulasi Ursulasi accusative nom. Ursulasi Ursulasi gen. Ursulasi genitive Ursulasi Ursuloidesi Ursuloittesi Ursulaisi rare partitive Ursulaasi Ursuloitasi inessive Ursulassasi Ursuloissasi elative Ursulastasi Ursuloistasi illative Ursulaasi Ursuloihisi adessive Ursulallasi Ursuloillasi ablative Ursulaltasi Ursuloiltasi allative Ursulallesi Ursuloillesi essive Ursulanasi Ursuloinasi translative Ursulaksesi Ursuloiksesi abessive Ursulattasi Ursuloittasi instructive — — comitative — Ursuloinesi first-person plural possessor singular plural nominative Ursulamme Ursulamme accusative nom. Ursulamme Ursulamme gen. Ursulamme genitive Ursulamme Ursuloidemme Ursuloittemme Ursulaimme rare partitive Ursulaamme Ursuloitamme inessive Ursulassamme Ursuloissamme elative Ursulastamme Ursuloistamme illative Ursulaamme Ursuloihimme adessive Ursulallamme Ursuloillamme ablative Ursulaltamme Ursuloiltamme allative Ursulallemme Ursuloillemme essive Ursulanamme Ursuloinamme translative Ursulaksemme Ursuloiksemme abessive Ursulattamme Ursuloittamme instructive — — comitative — Ursuloinemme second-person plural possessor singular plural nominative Ursulanne Ursulanne accusative nom. Ursulanne Ursulanne gen. Ursulanne genitive Ursulanne Ursuloidenne Ursuloittenne Ursulainne rare partitive Ursulaanne Ursuloitanne inessive Ursulassanne Ursuloissanne elative Ursulastanne Ursuloistanne illative Ursulaanne Ursuloihinne adessive Ursulallanne Ursuloillanne ablative Ursulaltanne Ursuloiltanne allative Ursulallenne Ursuloillenne essive Ursulananne Ursuloinanne translative Ursulaksenne Ursuloiksenne abessive Ursulattanne Ursuloittanne instructive — — comitative — Ursuloinenne third-person possessor singular plural nominative Ursulansa Ursulansa accusative nom. Ursulansa Ursulansa gen. Ursulansa genitive Ursulansa Ursuloidensa Ursuloittensa Ursulainsa rare partitive Ursulaansa Ursuloitaan Ursuloitansa inessive Ursulassaan Ursulassansa Ursuloissaan Ursuloissansa elative Ursulastaan Ursulastansa Ursuloistaan Ursuloistansa illative Ursulaansa Ursuloihinsa adessive Ursulallaan Ursulallansa Ursuloillaan Ursuloillansa ablative Ursulaltaan Ursulaltansa Ursuloiltaan Ursuloiltansa allative Ursulalleen Ursulallensa Ursuloilleen Ursuloillensa essive Ursulanaan Ursulanansa Ursuloinaan Ursuloinansa translative Ursulakseen Ursulaksensa Ursuloikseen Ursuloiksensa abessive Ursulattaan Ursulattansa Ursuloittaan Ursuloittansa instructive — — comitative — Ursuloineen Ursuloinensa

Statistics

• Ursula is the 771^st (tied with 3 other names) most common female given name in Finland, belonging to 274 female individuals (and as a middle name to 1,164 more, making it more common as a middle name), according to February 2023 data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency of Finland.

Anagrams

• luraus

German

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin Ursula. Compare the popular form Ursel, from Middle High German Ursele.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈʊʁzula/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: Ur‧su‧la

Proper noun

Ursula f (proper noun, genitive Ursulas or (with an article) Ursula)

1. a female given name, very popular in German-speaking countries from the 1930s to the 1960s

Related terms

• Ursel
• Uschi

Latin

Etymology

From ursa (“she-bear”) +‎ -ula (diminutive suffix).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈur.su.la/, [ˈʊrs̠ʊɫ̪ä]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈur.su.la/, [ˈursulä]

Proper noun

Ursula f sg (genitive Ursulae); first declension

1. a female given name

Declension

First-declension noun, singular only.

	singular
nominative	Ursula
genitive	Ursulae
dative	Ursulae
accusative	Ursulam
ablative	Ursulā
vocative	Ursula

References

• Ursula in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• R. E. Latham, D. R. Howlett, & R. K. Ashdowne, editors (1975–2013), “Ursula”, in Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources‎^[1], London: Oxford University Press for the British Academy, →ISBN, →OCLC

Swedish

Etymology

From Latin Ursula. First recorded in Sweden in 1477.

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Proper noun

Ursula c (genitive Ursulas)

1. a female given name

See also

• Yrsa

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish Úrsula.

Pronunciation

• (Standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /ˈʔuɾsula/ [ˌʔuɾ.sʊˈla]
• Rhymes: -uɾsula
• Syllabification: Ur‧su‧la

Proper noun

Úrsulá (Baybayin spelling ᜂᜇ᜔ᜐᜓᜎ)

1. a female given name from Spanish