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Selma. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
Selma, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
Selma in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
Selma you have here. The definition of the word
Selma will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
Selma, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
English
Etymology
Taken to use in the 19th century when similar-sounding names, Elma, Thelma, Alma, Wilma, etc. were in vogue. Perhaps a shortening of Anselma, or from the name of a place in the James Macpherson's Ossian cycle of epic poems, itself from Scottish Gaelic sealladh + math (“good vision”). In some cases perhaps borrowed from Turkish Selma, from Arabic سَلْمَى (salmā).
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma (countable and uncountable, plural Selmas)
- (countable) A female given name.
- (countable) A surname.
- A placename
- A community of Nova Scotia, Canada.
- A village in Graubünden canton, Switzerland.
- A place in the United States.
- A city, the county seat of Dallas County, Alabama; named for James Macpherson's Ossianic poem The Songs of Selma.
- A city in Fresno County, California; named for early resident Selma Michelson.
- A city in Texas.
- A town in North Carolina; named for the city in Alabama.
- A town in Indiana.
- A census-designated place in Josephine County, Oregon.
- A census-designated place in Virginia.
- An unincorporated community in Arkansas.
- An unincorporated community in Iowa.
- An unincorporated community in Kansas.
- An unincorporated community in Missouri; named for the place in the Ossian cycle.
- An unincorporated community in Ohio.
Translations
Noun
Selma (plural Selmas)
- (US, politics, figuratively) A confrontation where authorities brutally repress those wanting civil rights, similar to Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama.
- 2020, Dane Smith, Star Tribune (Minneapolis), "Toward a better patriotism", 3 July 2020
- Eventually, our place and response may be viewed as a historic turning point, another Selma for the nation and world.
- 2015, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Workers World, "Black and Brown unity in Alabama", 24 June 2015
- Shelby County has become the new Selma.
- 1986, Daily Sitka Sentinel, Sitka Weekend, p.11, Friday 17 January 1986
- "I don't know how many Selmas you have in your memory," she said. "I have a lot in mine."
1965, The Fresno Bee, p.60, Wednesday 21 July 1965:How Many Selmas? Still another city in the south Is learning the hard way that the Negro will settle for nothing less than first class citizenship.
Coordinate terms
Anagrams
- Smeal, Salem, semla, mesal, Lemas, almes, males, EMALS, MELAS, lamés, lames, amels, Melas, Males, melas, meals, Smale, leams
Cebuano
Etymology
Possibly from Arabic سَلْمَى (salmā).
Proper noun
Selma
- a surname
Danish
Proper noun
Selma
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Estonian
Proper noun
Selma
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Faroese
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma f
- a female given name
Usage notes
Matronymics
- son of Selma: Selmuson
- daughter of Selma: Selmudóttir
Declension
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Singular
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Indefinite
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Nominative
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Selma
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Accusative
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Selmu
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Dative
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Selmu
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Genitive
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Selmu
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Finnish
Etymology
From English Selma.
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Declension
Statistics
- Selma is the 248th (tied with 1 other name) most common female given name in Finland, belonging to 2,147 female individuals (and as a middle name to 612 more), according to February 2023 data from the Digital and Population Data Services Agency of Finland.
Anagrams
Icelandic
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma f
- a female given name
Declension
Declension of Selma (sg-only feminine)
indefinite singular
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nominative
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Selma
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accusative
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Selmu
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dative
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Selmu
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genitive
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Selmu
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Norwegian
Proper noun
Selma
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Portuguese
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma f
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From Ottoman Turkish سلمى (selma) (Turkish Selma), from Arabic سَلْمَى (salmā).
Proper noun
Selma f (Cyrillic spelling Селма)
- a female given name
Declension
Further reading
- “Selma”, in Portal suvremenih hrvatskih osobnih imena [Portal of contemporary Croatian personal names] (in Serbo-Croatian), 2018–2024
Swedish
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma c (genitive Selmas)
- a female given name, equivalent to English Selma
Anagrams
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed from English, from various similar-sounding female given names.
Pronunciation
Proper noun
Selma (Baybayin spelling ᜐᜒᜎ᜔ᜋ)
- a female given name from English
Anagrams
Turkish
Etymology
From Arabic سَلْمَى (salmā).
Proper noun
Selma
- a female given name from Arabic