Mona is a female, and sometimes male, given name and a surname of multiple origins.

Mona
Pronunciation/ˈmnə/ MOH-nə
GenderFemale
Origin
Meaningvarious
Other names
Related namesMonica, Ramona, Simona

Given name

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As a given name, Mona can have the following meanings and origins;

Language Source Meaning Variant forms Gender
Arabic Variant transliteration of Muna (مُنى) Wish[1] Muna, Mouna Female
Breton Variant of Marivona Female
Formosan:
Atayal
Seediq
Atayal: Male
Seediq: Male and Female
Gaelic/Irish Anglicized form of Muadhnait [citation needed] Noble One Monah, Monna, Monya Female
Greek Monos (μονος) Solitary, One Female
Early Italian Contraction of the title Madonna My lady Female
Miwok Gathered of the seed of a jimson weed. Male and Female
Nepalese Bud Muna Female
Old English Moon Female
Persian منا or مونا An adjective for God, derives from Mana, means who lasts forever Female
Scottish Female form of Tormod, derived from Norman Northman, Viking [2] Female
Sanskrit Alone, silence Female
Teutonic Loner Female

In northern Europe, where the name is much more popular,[citation needed] Mona is interpreted as a diminutive of Monika or, rarely, of Ramona or Simona.[citation needed] It is sometimes associated with the title of Leonardo da Vinci's painting Mona Lisa, although in that context the word Mona is actually a title rather than a name. The word mona also means cute, monkey and doll in Spanish. In Sweden, Mona's name day is May 4.[3]

Mona was a relatively popular given name in the United States in the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s. The highest ranking it ever reached in the US was #230, in 1950.[4]

Notable people

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Fictional characters

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Nickname

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Surname

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As a surname, Mona can have two origins. In Italian and Greek, it is a feminine form of Moni which is a short form of Simone, the Italian form of Simon. In Arabic countries, it is derived from the given name Muna, meaning "unreachable wishes". It is the plural form of the word Munia (مـُـنيه).[5]

Notable people with the surname include:

  • Domenico Mona (1550–1602), Italian late-Renaissance painter
  • István Móna (1940–2010), Hungarian modern pentathlete and Olympic champion
  • Khwezi Mona (born 1992), South African rugby union player

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Mona". Behind the Name. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
  2. ^ "Tormod - Meaning of the name". Babynamespedia.com. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
  3. ^ "Name days for Mona". Behind the Name. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
  4. ^ "Popularity for Mona". Behind the Name. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
  5. ^ "The Mona Surname". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 18 December 2011.