Diana (name)


Diana is a feminine given name of Latin and Greek origins, referring to the Roman goddess Diana, goddess of the hunt and the moon.
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.

Variants

Female

Male

There are no traditional male variants of the name Diana, although there are some names that share the same sound, such as:
  • Dion
  • Dean
  • Dylan
  • Dana
  • Dian
  • Deric
  • Derwin
  • Dain

Unisex

  • Dana
  • Dion
  • Dian

In other languages

Origin and diffusion

Diana recalls the Greek and Roman goddess Diana. Diana translates to the Latin form Artemis. 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 "dium" meaning "universe". The meanings are therefore "heavenly", "holy", "divine", "demonic", "celestial", "cosmic", "nebulous", "chaotic", "abyssal", "void", "luminous", "shining", 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". The word "Diamond", or "Diamante" in French, is also brought from the Proto-Indo-European word "diya-", which means "bright light".
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. In Italy, the variant "Daiana", an adaptation based on the English pronunciation, is also common. The French variant "Diane" gained popularity during the 19th century.

People

Fictional characters