Coined by Hungarian poet Mihály Vörösmarty for a character in his pantomime 'Csongor és Tünde' (1831). The origin and meaning of this name are uncertain, however theories include a truncated form of Vilma and a contraction of Ilona and Vilma.
Used by Tolkien, it appears in the Silmarillion drafts from the 1930s as meaning "starlight" in Quenya. It also appears as an element in several other names in Tolkien's works.