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Ava - Origin and Meaning of the name

Meaning of the name Ava

[ 2 syll. a-va, av-a ] The girl name Ava is also used as a boy name, though the use for girls is far more popular. It is pronounced EYVah KEY.

1: Ava's origin is Germanic, and its use, German. The name is of obscure origin. It could be from the element aval ('strength') or avi ('desired') and the short form of various female Germanic compound names with the element 'av', such as Avaline, or else it could be of Latin or Persian roots. It was borne by the 9th-century Saint Ava, who became a Benedictine nun at Dinart, Hainaut; she was also from the Frankish royal family. The name was not often used by the end of the medieval period, but it was later made known in high society by the Philadelphia socialite Ava Lowle Willing (1868-1958), who married the wealthy businessman John Jacob Astor IV, and subsequently Thomas Lister, Baron Ribblesdale; she named her daughter Ava as well. The name later grew popular from the fame of the actress Ava Gardner (1922-1990). In recent times, it was made popular by a number of celebrities who chose the name for their babies, including the actress Reese Witherspoon, who named her baby Ava in 1999.

2: Ava's origin is Latin. Derived from the word avis with the meaning 'bird'.

3: Ava has its origins in the Persian language and it is used largely in Iranian. Meaning: 'voice, song, sound'.

In addition, Ava is an English form of the Czech, Dutch, English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Scandinavian, Slavic, Spanish, Hungarian, Indian, and Polish Eva.

Ava is also an English form of the English and French Eve. See also the related forms, the English Avis, the English Avila, and the English Evelyn.

Ava is very popular as a baby girl name, and it is also perceived as trendy. The name has been rising in popularity since the 1980s. At the recent peak of its usage in 2007, 0.857% of baby girls were named Ava. It had a ranking of #4 then. In 2008, it ranked at #5 with a usage of 0.820%, and it was the most popular out of all girl names in its family. Ava was 6 times more commonly used than the 2nd most popular name, the Czech, Dutch, English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Scandinavian, Slavic, Spanish, Hungarian, Indian, and Polish Eva, in 2008.

Baby names that sound like Ava include the Czech, Dutch, English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Scandinavian, Slavic, Spanish, Hungarian, Indian, and Polish Eva, the Hungarian Éva, the name Avi, the German and English Ebba, the Bini Ebbie, the Bini Ebby, the Welsh Efa, the German and English Effi, the Hebrew, English, and Scottish Effie, the English and Scottish Effy, the English and Hebrew Eppie, the English Evah, the English and Spanish Evie, the English Evvie, the Irish Ébha, the Yoruban Abebi, the Hebrew Abia, the Hebrew Abiah, the Hebrew Aviah, and the Hebrew Aviya.

A famous person named Ava is Actress Ava Gardner, born 24 December 1922 - 25 January 1990, Grabtown, North Carolina.

KEY: English pronunciation for Ava: EY as in "ate (EY.T)" ; V as in "vee (V.IY)" ; AH as in "hut (HH.AH.T)"


 
Popularity Trend
for Ava
from 1900 to 2008
Variant Popularity Chart
for Ava
in 2008
 

Meaning of Ava Meaning of Ava Meaning of Ava Meaning of Avila Meaning of Avis Meaning of Evelyn Meaning of Evie Meaning of Eve Meaning of Eveleen Meaning of Evvie Meaning of Evelina Meaning of Evaline Meaning of Evelin Meaning of Eva Meaning of Evelia Meaning of Aoife Meaning of Evah Meaning of Evlyn Meaning of Lina Meaning of Ina Meaning of Evia Meaning of Evetta Meaning of Ebba Meaning of Eba Meaning of Evangeline Meaning of Zoe Meaning of Geneva Meaning of Eva Maria Meaning of Ava