Concepción

Conception; a reference to the Immaculate Conception of Mary.

Concepción is a Spanish feminine name meaning “conception”, taken from the devotion to the Immaculate Conception of Mary. The reference concerns Mary herself: in Catholic belief, she was preserved from original sin from the beginning of her existence. The literal word names the act of conceiving, rather than “a woman who conceives”. The accent in Concepción marks the stressed final syllable. In Latin American Spanish, it is /kon.sep.ˈsjon/, roughly kon-sep-SYON; the final n is pronounced. In Spanish with distinción, the two c sounds before e and i become /θ/, like the th in English thin. The measured opening and emphatic -ción give the full name a formal, elegant feel. Concha and Conchita are established affectionate forms of Concepción. Their lighter shape offers a marked contrast to the ceremonious sound of the full name.

Etymology: From Spanish concepción, derived from Latin conceptio, conceptionem. Its use as a given name belongs to the Catholic Marian naming tradition.