Bright, clear, or famous
Clarissa is a Latinate elaboration of the name Clara. It gained significant literary prominence in the 18th century and has since been associated with intelligence and refinement.
About 212 girls were named Clarissa in 2025.
US births per 5-year period, 1990–present (SSA data).
The virtuous protagonist of Samuel Richardson's 1748 tragic novel · Clarissa, or, the History of a Young Lady
The titular high-society protagonist of Virginia Woolf's modernist masterpiece · Mrs. Dalloway
The clever, fourth-wall-breaking teenager in the 1990s sitcom · Clarissa Explains It All
Better known as Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross
English celebrity chef and television personality
Award-winning American television journalist and foreign correspondent
The same feel as Clarissa — far less common.
Hidden gems that stand out.
