Alma is from the Latin word almus meaning “nourishing, kind, propitious”. It is also a word for “soul” in Spanish. In Hungarian, it means “apple”. Then, in Hebrew, it means “young woman”. In Arabic it perhaps means "learned, knowing" from almah or alama meaning "to know". It’s a name with a variety of meanings and a lovely sound.

It brings to mind my favorite poem, Soneto XVII by Pablo Neruda. In the first verse it says, "te amo como se aman ciertas cosas oscuras, secretamente, entre la sombra y el alma." Or, in English, "I love you as certain dark things are to be loved, in secret, between the shadow and the soul."

Beautiful.

For me, Alma is a warm, creamy name like a cozy soft blanket and smells of fresh coconut, vanilla, and clean linens. It is also sometimes early mornings in late summer where the mist hangs in the air: warm, fresh, and new.

c o m b o s

• Alma Betony
• Alma Dorothy
• Alma Felicity
• Alma Florence
• Alma Helena
• Alma Josephine
• Alma Lilac
• Alma Lydia
• Alma Nightingale
• Alma Primrose
• Alma Rosalie
• Alma Rosemary
• Alma Wildflower
• Alma Wildflower Jean
• Alma Willow

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