How to say it
BEL · la
/ˈbɛl.ə/
Feminine
Bella
Beautiful
What it means
Italian for 'beautiful,' the feminine of bello. Also a short form of Isabella, Annabella, Mirabella, or Belinda. Today often given as a standalone name.
Bella is Italian for 'beautiful' (feminine of bello). Historically it served as a short for any -bella name (Isabella, Annabella, Mirabella). Twilight's Bella Swan (born Isabella in Stephenie Meyer's 2005 novel) gave it decisive English-language anchor; the surge from 2007 onward was direct. The independent Bella spelling has been in the US top 100 since 2010. In Italian and Spanish-speaking communities it's a standalone given name with centuries of use; in English, the standalone Bella is mostly a 21st-century choice. The Latin bellum ('war') is unrelated etymologically; bella from bello has no warlike root.
Popularity over time
peaked at #48 in 2010, currently #136 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Pop culture
Twilight's Bella Swan is the dominant association for parents naming since 2008; the Belle (Beauty and the Beast) connection is older. Both flatter.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Bella Swan Heroine of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga, played by Kristen Stewart
- Bella Hadid American model
Spelling variants
- Isabella
- Annabella
- Belle
Names with the same feeling
See Bella from another angle
By meaning
By style