Vilma is the Hungarian, Finnish, and Spanish short form of Wilhelmina — from the Old Germanic *wil* ("will, desire") + *helm* ("helmet, protection") — "resolute protector." **A top-1000 US baby name in the early 20th century, especially in immigrant communities**. **Vilma Bánky (1901-1991)** — **Hungarian-American silent-film actress; one of the highest-paid stars of the late silent era; discovered by Samuel Goldwyn in Budapest in 1925; paired with Rudolph Valentino in *The Eagle* (1925) and *The Son of the Sheik* (1926) — Valentino's final film — and with Ronald Colman in *The Winning of Barbara Worth* (1926); her Hungarian accent ended her career with the arrival of sound film**. **Vilma Espín (1930-2007)** — Cuban revolutionary and chemical engineer; founder of the Federation of Cuban Women (1960); wife of Raúl Castro; one of the most-powerful women in revolutionary Cuba. **Vilma Santos (born 1953)** — Filipino actress and politician; "Star for All Seasons" of Philippine cinema; Governor of Batangas (2007-2016) and Congresswoman; one of the most-awarded actresses in Philippine film history. **Wilma** is the English equivalent (already in the library). **Vilma Lwoff-Parlaghy** — Hungarian portrait painter.
Featured throughout silent cinema and 20th-century history.
Vilma reduces to three — the number of silent stardom.