"Hella" is an all-purpose word. It has its roots deep in the soul (I meant to type soil, but soul works here too, haha) of Northern California. It means something along the lines of "very" or "really," but it's much more than that. It's not just a word, but a statement of cultural identification, of a long-standing bond of trust and respect for fellow Northern Californians, and of a mutual understanding between you and the rest of the world that you are from (or, in the case of anyone who has lived with kids from NorCal, that you are an honorary resident) NorCal. As the subtle innuendoes of the word can only be understood by absorption, one must experience and be engulfed by it (as Northern Californians are from birth) to truly understand when its usage is appropriate. Hella is a word. It's a symbol. It's a way of life. Hella.

The farmers from Northern California who settled here a long time ago (probably before the 1950's) were patient and slow people and took everything with ease. When they communicated to explain "VERY" they would say "hell of a" instead of "very" or "a lot". Then the city folks who migrated in later to the Bay Area took the Northern California farmers saying and shortened it to "Hella" instead of "Hell of a."
So in the end the word "hella" comes from the Bay Area city folks. Short and sweet.

1- The proper name for the country of Greece.

2- An Australian soccer team located in Melbourne. 'South Melbourne Hellas'

An intensifier, with a grammatical function and usage similar to "very" or "really".

It's a contraction of "hell of", and may have originated in Alameda County, California. It was definitely in common use in Berkeley public schools as far back as 1979.

The real name for the country of Greece.
Mean, stone of Sun.

My own extensive research has found that the term 'hella' or 'hellof' did not originate in San Francisco, but rather Oakland, as the first anyone remembers hearing it was Oaklnd in 1976, then later. in the early 80s in San Francisco.

In Northern California, people tend to name quantities of various items slightly different. The 1st is one, the 2nd is two, the 3rd and beyond are hella.