English word origin

Etymology of Rita

From Romance (Italian Rita, Spanish Rita). A shortening of Italian Margherita, and Spanish Margarita, cognates of English Margaret. An Italian Saint Rita was canonized in 1900. The English name came into regular use in e

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

name

A female given name from the Romance languages, Italian, or Spanish.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Borrowed-form mentionRitait
Borrowed-form mentionRitaes
Derivation mentionMargheritait
Derivation mentionMargaritaes

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "roa",
        "3": "Rita"
      },
      "expansion": "Romance"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "it",
        "3": "Rita"
      },
      "expansion": "Italian Rita"
    },
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "es",
        "3": "Rita"
      },
      "expansion": "Spanish Rita"
    },
    {
      "name": "gloss",
      "args": {
        "1": "Italian <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"it\">Rita</i>, Spanish <i class=\"Latn mention\" lang=\"es\">Rita</i>"
      },
      "expansion": "(Italian Rita, Spanish Rita)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "it",
        "3": "Margherita"
      },
      "expansion": "Italian Margherita"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "es",
        "3": "Margarita"
      },
      "expansion": "Spanish Margarita"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "Italian",
      "w:Italian language"
    ],
    [
      "Rita",
      "Rita#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "Spanish",
      "w:Spanish language"
    ],
    [
      "Rita",
      "Rita#Spanish"
    ],
    [
      "Margherita",
      "Margherita#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "Margarita",
      "Margarita#Spanish"
    ],
    [
      "Margaret",
      "Margaret#English"
    ],
    [
      "canonize",
      "canonize"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A female given name from the Romance languages, Italian, or Spanish."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "754421aff9d82e3bf31882756d733592a1e2bb624a66141cab394be9ec47f386",
      "rawRecordSha256": "dc35f03f165f9f54342bc5f3ddb94ccfaf3ba05037416ae270bb430df4940905",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 379664
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

name

A female given name from Sanskrit.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From South Asian languages, from Sanskrit रीता (rītā).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Borrowed-form mentionरीताsa

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "bor",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "sa",
        "3": "रीता"
      },
      "expansion": "Sanskrit रीता (rītā)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "रीता",
      "रीता#Sanskrit"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "name",
      "glosses": [
        "A female given name from Sanskrit."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "c0ac92f989d3e172c5cd16e96ea371bb961752abc872a165b1dda248b098b851",
      "rawRecordSha256": "48501d853eb5ebbab734b1e040c0908796c955ce5e9421fbea52a2d606a0131c",
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    }
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  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
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    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for Rita →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-Uml0YQ