Priscila is the Spanish and Portuguese form of Priscilla — from the Latin *priscus* ("ancient, venerable, of former times"). **A popular name across Latin America and the Lusophone world**. **The biblical Priscilla (Prisca) was an early Christian missionary mentioned in Acts and the Pauline epistles — she and her husband Aquila were tentmakers who hosted a house church and instructed the eloquent preacher Apollos; one of the most-prominent women in the early Christian church and frequently cited in discussions of women's leadership in Christianity**. **Priscila Meirelles (born 1983)** — Brazilian model and beauty queen; Miss Earth 2004 — the first Brazilian to win the title; later married actor Ed Westwick. **Priscila Joseph** — Indian actress. **Priscila Perales (born 1981)** — Mexican model; Miss International 2007. **The name carries strong Catholic devotional roots (Saint Priscilla, an early Roman martyr, has catacombs named for her on the Via Salaria in Rome — among the oldest Christian burial sites)**. **Priscila** has steadily risen in US Hispanic communities as a heritage-spelling alternative to the anglicized Priscilla, paralleling the rise of Renata, Camila, and Valentina. **Priscila Fantin** — Brazilian actress.
Featured throughout early Christianity and Latin American culture.
Priscila reduces to nine — the number of the early church.