clarissa/kləˈɹɪsə/EtymologyBorrowed from Italian Clarissa, from Medieval Latin Clarissa; see there for more. Popularized in English by Samuel Richardson's 1748 novel Clarissa. Doublet of Clarisse.clarissa means A female given name from Latin or Italian. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 79 out of 100.nameA female given name from Latin or Italian.“My wife's maiden name—Unmarried name, I should rather say […] was Harlowe—Clarissa Harlowe—you heard me call her my Clarissa— I did—but I thought it to be a feigned or a love-name, said Miss Rawlins. […] No—it was her real name, I said.”nounSynonym of Poor Clare: a nun of the Order of Saint Clare.“Following Francis' example, Clare founded an order of religious women known as the Poor Ladies of Assisi (like Francis' Poor Men), and later as the Clarissas or Poor Clares in her honor.”