# Loretta

Loretta is a female given name, the masculine version being Lauro. The name is a diminutive form of Lora, itself a form of Laura, which refers to the laurel tree, a symbol of victory.
This name is Italian in origin; it was popularized in the United States in the 1930s. It has many variant forms, including Laura, Lora, Loreen, Lorene, Lorinda/Laurinda (English), Lauretta, Loreta, and Loreto (Italian).

## People with this name

* Loretta Bradley (born 1933), American professor
* Loretta de Braose, Countess of Leicester, (c. 1185-c. 1266)
* Loretta Carter Hanes (1926–2016), American educator, activist
* Loretta Chase (born Loretta Lynda Chekani, 1949), American writer
* Loretta Chen (born 1976), Singaporean theatre director and actor
* Loretta Claiborne, American global speaker who competes in the Special Olympics
* Loretta Devine (born 1949), American actress
* Loretta Doyle (born 1963), British judoka
* Loretta Goggi (born 1950), Italian singer, actress, television host, and dancer
* Loretta King Hadler (1917–2007), American actress
* Loretta Harrop (born 1975), Australian triathlete
* Loretta Huber, American poker player, World Series of Poker champion 1988
* Loretta Jafelice, American voice actress
* Loretta Kelley, American fiddle player
* Loretta Long (born 1940), American actress
* Loretta Lux (born 1969), German fine art photographer working in Ireland
* Loretta Lynch (born 1959), Attorney General of the United States
* Loretta Lynn (born Loretta Webb; 1932–2022), American singer-songwriter
* Loretta McNeil (1907–1988), American athlete
* Loretta Nall, founder of the United States Marijuana Party
* Loretta Napoleoni (born 1955), Italian economist
* Loretta A. Preska (born 1949), American judge
* Marion Loretta Reid (1929–2023), Canadian politician
* Loretta Sanchez (born 1960), U.S. Representative
* Loretta Ables Sayre (born 1958), American actress and singer
* Loretta Schafer (1917–1998), American nun
* Loretta Schrijver (born 1956), Dutch television host
* Loretta Schwartz-Nobel, American journalist
* Loretta Spencer, American politician, former mayor of Huntsville, Alabama
* Loretta Swit (born 1937), American actress
* Loretta Tofani (born 1953), American journalist
* Loretta Clemens Tupper (1906–1990), American singer
* Loretta Ucelli, American management advisor who served as Assistant to the President and Director of White House
* Loretta Perfectus Walsh (1896–1925), first American active-duty Navy woman
* Loretta Weinberg (born 1935), American politician
* Loretta Yang, performing artist in the Taiwan cinema
* Loretta Young (1913–2000), American actress

## Fictional characters

* Loretta, formerly Stan, in the film Monty Python's Life of Brian
* Loretta Brown in the American animated show Family Guy
* Loretta Callisto in the American animated show Miles from Tomorrowland
* Loretta Castorini, the main character in the film Moonstruck, played by Cher
* Loretta Jones in the British soap opera Hollyoaks
* Loretta Tortelli in the American television show Cheers
* Loretta Wade in the American television show NCIS: New Orleans
* Loretta is a boss in the video game Elden Ring, also referred to as Loretta, Knight of the Haligtree
* Loretta mother of Wade Watson in the novel “Ready Player One” by Earnest Cline
* Loretta Durkin in the American television show Only Murders in the Building