Killa

Syllable breakdown

Name meaning and origin

Origin

Quechua (Andes, South America)

Meaning

the Quechua word for moon used as a feminine given name, connecting the bearer to Mama Quilla, the moon goddess of the Inca pantheon, and to the lunar cycle that governs the Andean agricultural calendar and the rhythms of female life; in Quechua cosmology killa encompasses both the moon as a celestial body and the month as a unit of time — the lunar calendar organised Andean ritual life, agricultural planting and harvest, and the cycle of Inca festivals; the moon is associated with silver, water, femininity, and the nocturnal world in Inca religious thought, and naming a daughter Killa places her within this celestial feminine tradition; the name has become increasingly popular among Quechua-speaking communities engaged in language and cultural revival as an authentically Andean alternative to Spanish-origin names, and it carries strong resonance as an expression of indigenous identity and cultural continuity

Gender

female

Also spelled

Qilla, Quilla