Diana

dy-AN-ah

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The name Diana means “divine, heavenly.” It comes from the Latin language tradition.

Diana was the Roman goddess of the hunt and the moon, equivalent to the Greek Artemis. It is the name of Princess Diana of Wales, whose global fame has kept the name in public consciousness.

Wiktionary traces Diana to Diāna, a short form of Dīāna derived by syncope from Dīvāna, related to the root for 'goddess' (compare deus/dea); it describes her as an Old Italic divinity of light and the moon, later identified with the Greek goddess Artemis. Wikipedia similarly identifies Diana as a Latin- and Greek-origin name referring to the Roman goddess of the hunt and the moon. Wiktionary adds that the name is cognate with the Greek Diōnē, and notes a possible further cognate relationship with June by way of Iūnō, while flagging one ancient explanation of the name, via Varro, as now discredited.

Neither source retrieved confirms the Princess Diana of Wales association sometimes cited; both sources are concerned only with the name's ancient Roman divine origin.

• Princess Diana
• Diana Ross
• Diana Rigg

Sibling names that share Diana's rhythm and register without echoing it too closely.