Columba as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Columba

What is the meaning of the name Columba ?

The baby name Columba is a Male name , 3 syllables long and is pronounced /kəˈlʌmbə/ (kuh-LUM-buh).

Columba is Latin in Origin.

Columba derives from Latin columba, meaning “dove,” a symbol of peace and the Holy Spirit in Christian tradition. The name was borne by several saints, most famously the 6th‑century Irish missionary known in Gaelic as Colum Cille (“dove of the church”), whose work helped Christianize Scotland. Because of this legacy, Columba/Colum became widespread in medieval Gaelic lands and was often treated as a masculine name, though in Latin and Romance contexts it remained grammatically feminine.

Usage radiated through cultures and centuries: it underlies the Scottish royal name Maol Choluim (“devotee of Columba”), later Malcolm. Variants and cognates include Colm (Irish), Colum and Columb (Scottish), Colmán/Colman (diminutive), Columbanus/Columban (Latinized), and feminine forms Columba (Spanish), Colombe (French), and Colomba (Italian). The core meaning stays “dove,” evoking purity, reconciliation, and spiritual guidance - qualities that keep Columba appealing in modern Catholic and Celtic‑revival naming.