- Origin: Late Latin
- Meaning: “golden rose.”
- Gender: feminine
- Usage: Galician, Italian, Spanish
The name is derived from the Latin rosa (rose) & aurea (golden), other sources believe the second element may be from the Latin aura meaning “breath; air.”Some sources believe Pedro Calderón de la Barca invented the name for his 1635 play, Life is a Dream (La vida es sueño in Spanish), but the name seems to have been in use in Italy and Spain for far longer. It also may just be a combination of Rosa & Aura.
In the early modern period, the name may have been used in reference to The Golden Rose, a papal reward of affection that was often given to royalty and high ranking religious officials.
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