Roman family name from 'drusus' meaning strong; appears in the New Testament (Acts 24:24).
Drusilla carries the weight of Roman imperial history in its syllables. The name belongs to the gens Livia, one of Rome's most powerful patrician families, and was borne most notably by Livia Drusilla — wife of Emperor Augustus and arguably the most powerful woman in Rome's history. Her political acumen, longevity, and alleged scheming behind the scenes of the imperial court made her a figure of enduring fascination.
A later Drusilla, the granddaughter of Herod the Great, appears in the New Testament's Acts of the Apostles as the Jewish wife of the Roman governor Felix. The name entered the English literary tradition through the 17th and 18th centuries, used by playwrights and novelists as a stock name for Roman or foreign characters of mysterious character. In more recent popular culture, Drusilla became the name of a fan-favorite vampire in the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer — a character whose wild, prophetic madness gave the name a gothic, otherworldly electricity that it still carries in certain circles.
As a given name outside fictional contexts, Drusilla remained rare throughout the 20th century — too Roman for everyday use, too grand for the era of Susans and Karens. Yet it possesses precisely the qualities that make a name remarkable: it is unmistakable, historically loaded, melodically complex, and utterly unforgettable. For a child who will have to make an impression, Drusilla arrives pre-equipped.