Of Germanic and/or Greek origin.
Latin form of the name Rose.
Associated with the Old Norse “rós”, which derives from Latin rosa, with the Germanic “hrópi”, meaning fame, honor, and the Middle German “ros”, meaning horse.
Also, from the Ancient Greek word “ῥόδον”, Aeolic “wrodon”, meaning the flower rose, which is associated with the Persian word “wŗda” of the same meaning.
It was transferred into Latin and Italian word rosa. In English rose was used as a color name since 1520.
It is also mentioned as a short for Euphrosyne.
Santa Rosa is the patron saint of Viterbo, a city in central Italy.
Alternative forms of the name are: Rose, Rosita, Róisín, Royse, Rosabel, Rosinha, Rosalia, Rozalia, Rosette, etc.
Famous bearers are Rosa Parks, Rosa Luxembourg, Rosa Mota, Rosa Lopez, Rosa Salazar.
The Neville Brothers song “Sister Rosa” is dedicated to activist Rosa Parks, who became known as “the first lady of civil rights”, after refusing to give up her bus seat in 1955.