Contribute your knowledge to the name Loretta

Comments and insights on the name Loretta

Loretta is actually my middle name - after my aunt, a Catholic nun. This name is most often found in Irish and Black families.

Personal experiences with the name Loretta

My name is Loretta. I have always loved the sound and uniqueness of it. I get many comments about it, mostly about it being a very beautiful name. My parents took some time to decide what to call me as they were not for some reason I 1976 expecting a girl. Without any problems having my mother's name on my birth certificate as my own, because once decided (I was named after my mother's most dear and inspirational teacher) my father refused to pay the registry office to change it, I only had problems when applying to university despite having a passport bank accounts etc and had to pay to change it and correct my birth certificate. I do like my name and get a little protective about it. It's been a challenge for a few months since a lady started working in my department called Loretto. She said her parents meant to name her Loretta but accidentally gave her the boys version. Often African Caribbean ladies when learning my name say..."but you''re white!" I find this amusing because I believe it has Latin/European origins. Loretta has never been successfully shortened and stuck. Lot, Lottie Lor, Lol, Let, Lorrie, etc have come and gone. Ret, unusually has stuck in the last seven or so years of my 37 year long life because of young children's pronunciations of it and ease of signing off electronically. Plus it's still unique tho has taken some getting used to. My new nephew has settled for auntie Etta. Mom calls me Lorett which is the preferred day to day reference for Loretto at work. We both have first/second generation Irish heritage. She is about 12-15 years older than me.
A Sikh flatmate once told me if I wanted success in life I should change my name by deed poll. He was so passionate that this is something EVERYONE should do at some point but this never sat well with me as being Loretta all or most of my life I believe my name has been part of very significant success throughout my life so for now....I'm sticking with it. Thanks mom and dad!!

My mother had a college friend named Loretta and she was very pretty. (My mother and her friend were WHITE, by the way.)

Is Loretta a black name? I never knew that! I've known 3 Loretta's in my lifetime and they were white. Also, there was the movie star Loretta Young, and she was white. I think the name could be used for anybody, black or white.

Much better than True or Stormi.

I think that Loretta is one of those rare names that can suit almost anyone. With most names I picture a certain type of person. My Loretta has olive skin, big dark eyes and medium brown hair and it suits her perfectly. And it would have been just as well a fit if we had adopted a daughter from Asia or Africa, or if she'd been fair, blond and blue eyed.

Nicknames for Loretta

Lori, Etta, Lotti

Meanings and history of the name Loretta

Can be an English variant of the Italian diminutive Lauretta (for Laura). It can also be a tribute to Our Lady of Loreto, referring to the Holy House of Loreto, the house in which Mary was born and where the Annunciation occurred. Tradition says that a band of angels scooped up the little house from the Holy Land, and transported it first to Tersato, Dalmatia in 1291, then Recanati, Italy in 1294, and finally to Loreto, Italy where it has been for centuries.

Famous real-life people named Loretta

Loretta Lynn, country music singer
Loretta Young, Hollywood actress
Loretta Swit, American television actress (MASH)
One of the twin daughters of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick is called Loretta. Her full name is Marion Loretta Elwell Broderick.
Loretta West, youngest daughter of notorious New Zealand criminal Wolfgang West

Loretta in song, story & screen

get back by the beatles sings about a girl named loretta

The 2004 Disney Channel Original Movie (DCOM) "Pixel Perfect" had a character named "Loretta Modern" who was a hologram designed to help one of the main character's band (The Zetta bytes) succeed(possibly a reference to the song "get back" by the beatles)