Lolita (pronounced /lɒlˈiːtə/ or /ləˈliːtə/; US /loʊˈliːtə/)[1] is a female given name of Spanish origin. It is the diminutive form of Lola, itself a diminutive form of Dolores (Spanish: suffering).
The name was made famous by Vladimir Nabokov's 1955 novel Lolita. Due to its associations with the novel's title character, the name has acquired the meaning of a sexually precocious girl.[2] A UK retail chain was criticised in January 2008 for branding as "Lolita" a bed aimed at young girls.[3]
Popularity
According to the United States Social Security Administration, the popularity of the name Lolita peaked in the United States in 1963, when it was the 467th most popular female name. The name's popularity dropped since then; the SSA has not ranked Lolita in the top 1000 most popular female names since 1973.[4]
According to the 1990 US Census, Lolita was ranked the 969th most frequent female name out of 4,275 unique names.[5]
The name remains popular in some other countries, e.g. Latvia where its name day is 30 May.[3]
References
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