Melissa f
1 English: from the Greek word melissa bee. It is the name of the good witch who releases Rogero from the power of the bad witch Alcina in Ariosto's narrative poem Orlando Furioso (1532). The name has recently increased considerably in popularity, together with other female names sharing the same first syllable.
2 Irish: recently adopted as an Anglicized form of the Gaelic female name MAOILÍOSA (SEE Maoilíosa).
Variant (of 1): Melitta (from an ancient Greek dialectal variant of the same word).
First names dictionary. 2012.