Gender | Female |
---|---|
Origin | |
Word/name | Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Coptic |
Meaning | Several meanings: 1) "bitter", 2) "beloved", 3)"rebelliousness", 4)"wished-for child", 5)"marine", 6)"drop of the sea", 7)"famous" [1] |
Other names | |
Variant form(s) | Mariah, Marie, Marija, Mariya |
Related names | Mary, Maryam, Miriam, Mari, Maya, Maris |
Maria is a feminine given name. It is given in many languages influenced by Christianity.
It was used as the feminine form of the unrelated Roman name Marius (see Maria gens), [2] and, after Christianity had spread across the Roman empire, it became the Latinised form of the name of Miriam: Mary, mother of Jesus.
Maria (Greek: Μαρία) is a form of the name used in the New Testament, standing alongside Mariam (Μαριάμ). It reflects the Syro-Aramaic name Maryam, which is in turn derived from the Biblical Hebrew name Miriam . As a result of their similarity and syncretism, the Latin original name Maria and the Hebrew-derived Maria combined to form a single name.
In Germanic languages, the name's usage is connected with the Germanic element *mar meaning "famous".
The name is also sometimes used as a male (middle) name. This was historically the case in many Central Europe countries and still is the case in countries with strong Catholic traditions, where it signified patronage of the Virgin Mary (French-speakers often did the same with Marie ).
In the Arabic language the name Mariam (مريم) (also written: Meryem, Mariya) means either "white beautiful woman" or "white cow" or "a little bird with the same size as a pigeon", [3] and it is quite popular in North Africa. One of the feminine Sahaba had the name Maria, Maria the Coptic.
Maria was a frequently given name in southern Europe even in the medieval period. In addition to the simple name, there arose a tradition of naming girls after specific titles of Mary, feast days associated with Mary and specific Marian apparitions (such as María de los Dolores , María del Pilar , María del Carmen etc., whence the derived given names of Dolores , Pilar , Carmen etc.). By contrast, in northern Europe the name only rose to popularity after the Reformation. [4]
Because the name is so frequent in Christian tradition, a tradition of giving compound names has developed, with a number of such compounds themselves becoming very popular. Examples, among numerous others, include:
As a feminine given name, Maria ranked 109th in the United States as of 2015, down from rank 31 held during 1973–1975. [5] The English form Mary was at rank 214 as of 2015, after a much steeper decline down from being raked first consistently during 1880–1968. [6]
Spelling variants of Maria include: Mária (Hungarian, Slovakian), María (Greek, Icelandic, Spanish), Máire and Muire (Irish), Marya (transliterated from Cyrillic), Marija (Latvian, but also used in other Balto-Slavic languages) and Maria (Polish). Due to a very strong devotion of Irish and Polish Catholics to the Blessed Virgin Mary, a special exception is made for two other forms of her name – Muire and Maryja: no one else may take that name, similar to the way the name Jesus is not used in most languages. The English form Mary is derived via French Marie .
A great number of hypocoristic forms are in use in numerous languages. Cyrillic Maryam and Miriam have numerous variants, such as
The spelling in Semitic abjads is mrym: Aramaic ܡܪܝܡ, Hebrew מרים, Arabic مريم.
Cyrillic spellings are Мария (Maríja) (Russian, Bulgarian), Марыя (Marýja) (Belarusian), Марія (Maríja) (Ukrainian) and Марија (Marija) (Serbian, Macedonian).
Georgian uses მარიამ (Mariam) and მარია (Maria); Armenian has Մարիամ (Mariam).
Chinese has adopted the spelling 瑪麗 (simplified 玛丽, pinyin Mǎlì).
The variant Mariah (usually pronounced /məˈraɪə/ ) was rarely given in the United States prior to the 1990s, when it bounced in popularity, from rank 562 in 1989 to rank 62 in 1998, in imitation of the name of singer Mariah Carey (whose Vision of Love topped the charts in 1990).
Alexandra is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander. Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb ἀλέξειν and ἀνήρ. Thus it may be roughly translated as "defender of man" or "protector of man". The name Alexandra was one of the epithets given to the Greek goddess Hera and as such is usually taken to mean "one who comes to save warriors". The earliest attested form of the name is the Mycenaean Greek 𐀀𐀩𐀏𐀭𐀅𐀨, written in the Linear B syllabic script. Alexandra and its masculine equivalent, Alexander, are both common names in Greece as well as countries where Germanic, Romance, and Slavic languages are spoken.
Nadia is a female name. Variations include Nadja, Nadya, Nadine, Nadiya, and Nadiia. Most variations of the name are derived from Arabic, Slavic languages, or both.
Natalia is a female given name with the original Late Latin meaning of "Christmas Day".
Olga is a female name of Slavic origins. It is the equivalent of Helga, and derived from the Old Norse adjective heilagr. The name was brought to Eastern Europe in the 9th century, by the Scandinavian settlers who founded Kievan Rus'.
Sophia, also spelled Sofia, is a feminine given name, from Greek Σοφία, Sophía, "Wisdom". Other forms include Sophie, Sophy, and Sofie. The given name is first recorded in the beginning of the 4th century. It is a common female name in the Eastern Orthodox countries. It became very popular in the West beginning in the later 1990s and became one of the most popularly given girls' names in the Western world in the first decades of the 21st century.
Monica is a female given name with many variant forms, including Mónica, Mônica, Monique (French), Monika, Moonika (Estonia), and Mónika (Hungarian).
Diana is a feminine given name of Latin and Greek origins, referring to the Roman goddess Diana. It came into use in the Anglosphere in the 1600s by classically educated parents as an English language version of the French version of the name, Diane.
Adriana, also spelled Adrianna, is a Latin name and feminine form of Adrian. It originates from present day Italy and Spain.
Amalia is a female given name, derived from the Germanic root amal, with meanings "vigorous, active, work", specifically the woman's name Amalberga. Its popularity is attributed to the Belgian Saint Amalberga of Maubeuge. The origins of the name Amalia have often been associated with those of Emilia and Emily, both of which in fact originate from the Latin nomen Aemilia, or with Amalthea, which originated from the Greek name "tender goddess". In Greece, the name is celebrated on 10 July in honour of Saint Amalia.
Anna is a feminine given name, the Latin form of the Greek: Ἄννα and the Hebrew name Hannah, meaning "favour" or "grace".
Irene, sometimes written Irini, is derived from εἰρήνη, the Greek word for "peace". Eirene was the Greek goddess of peace. Irene was also the name of an 8th-century Byzantine empress, as well as the name of several saints.
Gabriela is the Portuguese, Spanish, Czech, Slovak, Romanian, Latvian, Polish and Bulgarian feminine form of the Hebrew name Gabriel.
Margarita is a feminine given name in Latin and Eastern European languages. In Latin it came from the Greek word margaritari (μαργαριτάρι), meaning pearl, which was borrowed from the Persians.
Claudia is a female given name equivalent to Claudius or Claudio. In Portuguese, it is accented Cláudia. A variant and cognate form is Klaudia. It was originally used to refer to any woman who belonged to the ancient Roman Claudia gens. Claudia is a common name in countries that speak Germanic languages and Romance languages.
Antonia, Antónia, Antônia, or Antonía is a feminine given name and a surname. It is of Roman origin, used as the name of women of the Antonius family. Its meaning is "priceless", "praiseworthy" and "beautiful". Antonia is a Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese name used in many parts of the world.
Christina or Cristina is a feminine given name. It is a simplified form of the Latin Christiana, and a feminine form of Christianus or a Latinized form of the Middle English Christin 'Christian'. Short forms include Chris and Tina. The name is ultimately derived from the original Greek form of the name, Χριστίνα.
Veronica is a female given name, a Latin alteration of the Greek name Berenice (Βερενίκη), which in turn is derived from the Macedonian form of the Athenian Φερενίκη, Phereníkē, or Φερονίκη, Pheroníkē, from φέρειν, phérein, to bring, and νίκη, níkê, "victory", i.e. "she who brings victory".
Mariana is a feminine given name of Latin origin. The masculine equivalent is Marianus, which is derived from Marius. Marianus became Mariano in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.
Rita is a female name, often a name in its own right, but mostly a shortened version of Margarita. The feast day of Rita is generally celebrated on May 22 in honor of Saint Rita of Cascia.
Ana is a version of the female given name Anna meaning "favour" or "grace".