Nila

See also: Appendix:Variations of "nila"

English

Etymology 1

From Sanskrit नील (nīla, “of a dark colour; blue; black”), Bengali নীলা (nila, “blue”), or related words in other Indian subcontinent languages.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /nilə/
• Rhymes: -iːlə

Proper noun

Nila (plural Nilas)

1. A unisex given name borne by people in or from India.
   • 1872, J. T. Thomson, “The Whence of the Maori”, in Transactions, Royal Society of New Zealand, page 32:

     The father, Raja Sangsapurba, after visiting various countries, at length proceeded to Menangkabau, to the throne of which country, the principal seat of the Malays, he was elected. An illustrious princess of renowned beauty, named Nila Panchadi, was affianced to his son, […]

   • 1876, Police Reports of the Bombay Presidency including Sind, page 40:

     ... with the assistance of two men named Nila and Sakya. The body could not be found, as in the meantime the water in the river had risen. Nila confessed that he assisted in disposing of the body. He was therefore arrested and committed to ...

   • 1876, Benjamin Lewis Rice, Mysore and Coorg: Mysore, by districts, page 499:

     ... by a king from the north named Nila Sekhara, son of Raja Paramesvara Raya, who gave it the name of Nilavati-patna.

   • 1977, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Ninth Canto: Liberation, The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, →ISBN:

     Ajamidha had a son named Nila by his wife known as Nalini, and the son of Nila was Sänti.

   • 2013, Dr. G.P. Bhatt, Dr. G.V. Tagare, Ancient Indian Tradition and Mythology Volume 38: The Vayu Purana Part 2, Motilal Banarsidass, →ISBN, page 805:

     The mighty-armed lord of Pañcalas named Nila, who was the grandfather of Prsata, was killed by him (Ugrâyudha) (and thereby) he exhibited his valour.

   • 2015, Vipul Mudgal, Claiming India from Below: Activism and democratic transformation, Routledge, →ISBN:

     The above conversation takes place between Krishna and his five-year-old daughter Nila in Deiva Thirumagal, a Tamil film […]

2. A surname.

Alternative forms

• Neela

Statistics

• According to the 2010 United States Census, Nila is the 31824^th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 725 individuals. Nila is most common among Hispanic/Latino (83.31%) and White (11.86%) individuals.

Etymology 2

Related to Nile.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /naɪlə/
• Rhymes: -aɪlə

Proper noun

Nila (plural Nilas)

1. A female given name.
   • 2013, Ashea S. Goldson, Scorched:

     Nila began fumbling around in her purse. "There is just one thing . . . "
     "What is it?"
     “I have a daughter.” Nila pulled out a picture of Jasmine and handed it to Raima. She looked at the picture quickly and handed it back to Nila. “A daughter? Now how did you get away with that?” “It wasn't easy,” Nila said, […]

   • 2013, Amanda Cook Gilbert, Descendants of William Cromartie and Ruhamah Doane, WestBow Press, →ISBN, page 182:

     […] They had one daughter Nila born April 9, 1945.

Etymology 3

From Russian Ни́ла (Níla), feminine form of the male given name Ни́л (Níl), or from a related name in other languages such as Ukrainian Ніла (Nila).

Proper noun

Nila (plural Nilas)

1. A female given name from Russian or Ukrainian.
   • 1956, Willie Snow Ethridge, Nila: Her Story Told Willie Snow Ethridge, page 63:

     This woman who was cleaning there came and called, “Nila Ivanovna.” (They call you in Russia by your name and your father's Christian name: Ivanovna means daughter of Ivan.) “Nila Ivanovna, the NKVD came andthey ask for you  […]

   • 1989, Ukraine, page 16:

     In the performing arts — [an award is made] to Anatoliy Kocherha for his leading parts in the operas Boris Godunov by Modest Moussorgsky, Don Carlos by Guiseppe Verdi and Milana by Heorhiy Maiboroda at Kiev's Shevchenko Opera House; to Nila Kryukova for her concert programs […]

   • 1991, Sallie Bingham, Passion and Prejudice: A Family Memoir, with an Introduction, Hal Leonard Corporation, →ISBN, page 44:

     They looked beautiful to me, those young friends of Mother's with their carefully lipsticked mouths, their war work, their many children. An extraordinary bird of passage named Nila Magidoff made a great impression in those country houses. She had come to the United States from Russia […] Nila was an outspoken woman […]

Anagrams

• I-lan, INLA, Ilan, LNAI, Lain, Lani, Lian, Lina, anil, lain, nail