Etymology & Historical Origin of the Baby Name Marissa

The name Marissa is a fanciful elaboration of Maria (influenced by the “-issa” suffix from such names as Clarissa, Melissa, Alissa). Maria, in turn, is the Latin form of the English name Mary. Both Maria and Mary are derived from the New Testament name Miriam (Hebrew: Miryam), a name whose etymological origin is in question. There are varying opinions. For one, Miriam in the Old Testament could have been derived from the Egyptian “myr” meaning ‘beloved.’ The Hebrew elements “mar + yam” have been translated to ‘drop of the sea’ which was later altered to Mary’s epithet, Star of the Sea, bringing another meaning to the name: ‘strong waters.’ The name Marissa is a later 20th century invention, mainly in the United States.

All About the Baby Name – Marissa

Personality

OF THE GIRL NAME MARISSA

The number Eight personality has everything to do with power, wealth and abundance. Somehow, this personality has been blessed on the material plane, but their authoritative and problem-solving traits provide evidence that their good fortunes are not just the luck of the lottery. They are well earned. This is the personality of CEOs and high-ranking military personnel. Eights are intensely active, hard-driving individuals. Success is only meaningful to them after a job well-done.  They are remarkable in their ability to see the larger picture right down to the smallest details, and organize a strategy around success. They then have the ability to direct a group around them toward any goal, and realize individual potential to get the most out of their team.

Popularity

OF THE GIRL NAME MARISSA

Marissa first appeared on the U.S. popularity charts in 1963 and takes off in usage quite quickly. After 25 years of growth, Marissa landed a spot on the Top 100 list of most commonly used girl names in 1989. The height of her popularity came during the 1990s when the name got as high as position #53 on the charts (in the years 1994 and 1995). After that, the name sort of waned and by 2006, Marissa fell off the Top 100 list. Her downward spiral is pretty significant because Marissa has already fallen off the Top 200. Marissa, Melissa and Melanie are apparently giving way to newer “M” name inventions such as Mackenzie, Makenna and Makayla. Marissa is a beautiful name, so consider using it as a middle name if you want a more updated and fashionable first name.

Quick Facts

ON MARISSA

GENDER:

Girl

ORIGIN:

American

NUMBER OF SYLLABLES:

3

RANKING POPULARITY:

379

PRONUNCIATION:

mah-RIS-ah

SIMPLE MEANING:

Beloved, drop of the sea

Characteristics

OF MARISSA

Authoritative

Powerful

Tough

Tenacious

Wealthy

Problem-solver

Achiever

Cultural References to the Baby Name – Marissa

Literary Characters

OF THE BABY NAME MARISSA

We cannot find any significant literary characters by the name of Marissa

Childrens Books

ON THE BABY NAME MARISSA

We cannot find any childrens books with the first name Marissa


Popular Songs

ON MARISSA

We cannot find any popular or well-known songs with the name of Marissa


Famous People

NAMED MARISSA

Marissa Jaret Winokur (actress)
Marissa Castelli (figure skater)
Marissa Irvin (tennis player)
Marisa Miller (supermodel)
Marissa Ribisi (actress)

Children of Famous People

NAMED MARISSA

We cannot find any children of famous people with the first name Marissa

Historic Figures

WITH THE NAME MARISSA

We cannot find any historically significant people with the first name Marissa