Sophia - Origin and Meaning of the name

[ 3 syll. sop-hia, so-ph-ia ] The girl name Sophia is pronounced as SowFIYah or SOWFiyah ^KEY. Sophia is mainly used in the English, German, Greek, Italian, and Russian languages, and its language of origin is Old Greek. Derived literally from the element 'sophia' which means wisdom. The name was borne by Saint Sophia, apparently not a real person; the misinterpretation of the Greek phrase 'Hagia Sophia' meaning 'holy wisdom' and its Latin equivalent 'Sancta Sophia' as a person's name 'Saint Sophia' may have given rise to the Eastern cult. The name was introduced to English speakers via Hungary and Germany in the 17th century; it was known from Electress Sophia of Hanover (1630-1714), who became the mother of George I, King of England and de facto Prince-Elector of Hanover. The name was also popularized by the Henry Fielding comic novel Tom Jones (1749), which featured a character named Sophia Western. The name was widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries, but it suffered a drop in popularity thereafter. The recent revival of the name may be attributed to the fame of the Italian actress Sophia Loren (1934-). The name has also been used as the Anglicized form of the Scottish Gaelic Beathag.

The name Sophia is used to a great extent; it has 32 variations that are used in both English and other languages. Sonia (used in Russian as well), Sonja (used in Dutch, Russian, Scandinavian, Slavic, and German as well), Sophy, and Sunya are variations of Sophia that are used in English. The pet form Sophie (used in French, and German as well), and the variant spelling Sofia (used in German, Italian, and Scandinavian as well) are other English forms.

Foreign variations of Sophia include the Spanish Chofa, the Spanish Chofi, the French and Spanish Fifi, the Greek, Scandinavian, and Spanish Sofi, the Spanish Soficita, the Czech, Dutch, German, and Scandinavian Sofie, the Slavic Sofija, the Russian Sofiya, the Spanish Sofía, the Russian Sofka, the Italian Sofonisba, the Russian and Turkish Sofya, the Italian Sophea, the Greek Sophoon, the Hebrew Tzofiya, the Polish Zocha, the Czech, Polish, and Ukrainian Zofia, the Czech Zofie, the Czech Zofka, the Polish Zophia, the Polish Zosha, the Polish Zosia, and the Hungarian Zsófia. Specific foreign forms include the pet forms Fieke (German) and Sonya (Russian and Scandinavian), and the variant spelling Zsofia (Hungarian).

See also the related form, the Scottish Beathag.

Sophia is very popular as a baby name for girls, and it is also viewed as trendy. The name has been growing in popularity since the 1950s. Its usage peaked recently in 2007 with 0.806% of baby girls being given the name Sophia. It ranked at #6 then. In 2008, its usage was 0.773% and its ranking #7, and it was the most popular among all girl names in its group. In 2008, Sophia was thrice as popular as the 2nd most popular name, the English, German, Italian, and Scandinavian Sofia.

Baby names that sound like Sophia include the English, German, Italian, and Scandinavian Sofia, the Spanish Sofía, the English Sabia, the Arabic Sabiya, the Arabic Sabiyah, the Swahili Saffiya, the Arabic Safia, the Arabic and Swahili Safiya, the English Sheeva, the Italian Sibella, the Russian Sofiya, the Russian and Turkish Sofya, the Italian Sophea, the Arabic Saba, the Arabic Sabah, the Arabic Sabaya, the English Sabha, the Arabic and Iranian Safa, the Russian Savya, and the Spanish Shaba.

A famous person named Sophia is Actress Sophia Loren, born Sofia Scicolone, 20 September 1934, Rome, Italy.

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