Selma

See also: selma, šelma, and šeļma

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

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛlmə/

Proper noun

Selma (countable and uncountable, plural Selmas)

1. (countable) A female given name.
2. (countable) A surname.
3. A placename
   1. A community in Nova Scotia, Canada.
   2. A village in Graubünden canton, Switzerland.
   3. A place in the United States.
      1. A city, the county seat of Dallas County, Alabama; named for James Macpherson's Ossianic poem The Songs of Selma.
      2. A city in Fresno County, California; named for early resident Selma Michelson.
      3. A city in Texas.
      4. A town in North Carolina; named for the city in Alabama.
      5. A town in Indiana.
      6. A census-designated place in Josephine County, Oregon.
      7. A census-designated place in Virginia.
      8. An unincorporated community in Arkansas.
      9. An unincorporated community in Iowa.
      10. An unincorporated community in Kansas.
      11. An unincorporated community in Missouri; named for the place in the Ossian cycle.
      12. An unincorporated community in Ohio.

Translations

female given name

• Arabic: سَلْمَى‎ f (salmā)
• Danish: Selma
• Faroese: Selma f
• Finnish: Selma (fi)
• Icelandic: Selma (is) f
• Norwegian: Selma (no)
• Persian: سلما‎ (salmâ)
• Portuguese: Selma f
• Russian: Сельма (ru) f (Selʹma), Сальма f (Salʹma)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: Селма f

  Roman: Selma f

• Spanish: Salma f
• Swedish: Selma (sv)
• Turkish: Selma (tr) f

village in Switzerland

• Lombard: Selme

Noun

Selma (plural Selmas)

1. (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

• Bloody Sunday

Anagrams

• EMALS, Lemas, MELAS, Males, Salem, Smale, Smeal, almes, amels, lames, lamés, leams, males, meals, melas, mesal, semla

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Cebuano

Etymology

Possibly from Arabic سَلْمَى‎ (salmā).

Proper noun

Selma

1. a surname

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Danish

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

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Estonian

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

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Faroese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛlma/
• Rhymes: -ɛlma

Proper noun

Selma f

1. a female given name

Usage notes

Matronymics

• son of Selma: Selmuson
• daughter of Selma: Selmudóttir

Declension

	Singular
	Indefinite
Nominative	Selma
Accusative	Selmu
Dative	Selmu
Genitive	Selmu

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Finnish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈselmɑ/, [ˈs̠e̞lmɑ]
• Rhymes: -elmɑ
• Syllabification^(key): Sel‧ma

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

Declension

Inflection of Selma (Kotus type 9/kala, no gradation)
nominative		Selma	Selmat
genitive		Selman	Selmojen
partitive		Selmaa	Selmoja
illative		Selmaan	Selmoihin
		singular	plural
nominative		Selma	Selmat
accusative	nom.	Selma	Selmat
	gen.	Selman
genitive		Selman	Selmojen Selmainrare
partitive		Selmaa	Selmoja
inessive		Selmassa	Selmoissa
elative		Selmasta	Selmoista
illative		Selmaan	Selmoihin
adessive		Selmalla	Selmoilla
ablative		Selmalta	Selmoilta
allative		Selmalle	Selmoille
essive		Selmana	Selmoina
translative		Selmaksi	Selmoiksi
instructive		—	Selmoin
abessive		Selmatta	Selmoitta
comitative		—	Selmoineen

Possessive forms of Selma (type kala)
possessor	singular	plural
1st person	Selmani	Selmamme
2nd person	Selmasi	Selmanne
3rd person	Selmansa

Anagrams

• Salme

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Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsɛlma/
• Rhymes: -ɛlma

Proper noun

Selma f

1. a female given name

Declension

declension of Selma

f-w1	singular
	indefinite
nominative	Selma
accusative	Selmu
dative	Selmu
genitive	Selmu

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Norwegian

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

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Portuguese

Pronunciation

 

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈsɛw.mɐ/ [ˈsɛʊ̯.mɐ]

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈsɛw.mɐ/ [ˈsɛʊ̯.mɐ]
  • (Southern Brazil) IPA^(key): /ˈsɛw.ma/ [ˈsɛʊ̯.ma]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /ˈsɛl.mɐ/ [ˈsɛɫ.mɐ]

Proper noun

Selma f

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

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Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From Ottoman Turkish سلمى‎ (selma) (Turkish Selma), from Arabic سَلْمَى‎ (salmā).

Proper noun

Selma f (Cyrillic spelling Селма)

1. a female given name

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Swedish

Proper noun

Selma c (genitive Selmas)

1. a female given name, equivalent to English Selma

Anagrams

• males, samle, semla, smale

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Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English, from various similar-sounding female given names.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: Sel‧ma

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name from English

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Turkish

Etymology

From Arabic سَلْمَى‎ (salmā).

Proper noun

Selma

1. a female given name from Arabic