Diana
Diana was the Roman goddess of the Hunt.
GenderFemale
Origin
Word/namemythological
Meaningheavenly, divine
Other names
Related namesDeanna, Diane, Dianna, Kiana

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.[1] [2][3]

Variants

Variants in other languages

Origin and diffusion

Diana recalls the Greek and Roman goddess Diana. Diana translates to the Latin form Artemis.[5][6] The name can be traced back to the Proto-Indo-European root *dyeu or *dyeus and *div- meaning "to shine" or "sky", dius, deus and diwio, "deity, god, godlike" and [5] dium meaning Universe.[6] The meanings are therefore "heavenly", "holy", "divine", "demonic", "celestial", "cosmic", "nebulous", "chaotic", "abyssal", "void", "luminous", "shining",[5] and in a broader sense "which brings the day", "which has light", "which has divine power", "which belongs to the void/abyss/chaos" and "which comes from the Universe/outer space".

Diana was already in use as a given name in ancient Rome, but exclusively outside Christian circles, in which it was seen as a pagan name.[5] In Italy, the variant "Daiana", an adaptation based on the English pronunciation, is also common.[4] The French variant "Diane" gained popularity during the 19th century.[3]

People

Fictional people

See also

References

  1. ↑ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 76. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Crusca 1830, p. 627.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Llewellyn 2011, p. 172.
  4. 1 2 Galgani 2005, p. 215.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Galgani 2005, p. 223.
  6. 1 2 3 Albaigès 1993, p. 88.

Bibliography

  • Accademia della Crusca (1830). Dizionario della lingua italiana – Volume VII. Padua: Tipografia della Minerva.
  • Albaigès i Olivart, Josep M. (1993). Diccionario de nombres de personas. Edicions Universitat Barcelona. ISBN 84-475-0264-3.
  • Galgani, Fabio (2005). Onomastica Maremmana. Centro Studi Storici "A. Gabrielli".
  • Sheard, K. M. (2011). Llewellyn's Complete Book of Names. Llewellyn Publications. ISBN 0-7387-2368-1.
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