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 [ 3 syll. vir-gi-nia, vi-rgin-ia ] The girl name Virginia is pronounced as VerJHIHNYah KEY. Virginia is used chiefly in the English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Scandinavian, and Spanish languages. It is derived from Latin origins. The first name is from the Roman family name Virginius (Latin) or Verginius (Latin), from the Latin 'virgo' (virgin), genitive 'virginis' (virgin). The name was borne in Roman mythology by the beautiful maiden Verginia who was killed by her father Lucius Verginius to avoid the attention of the decemvir Appius Claudius; the case eventually led to an uprising against the decemviri and the re-establishment of the Roman republic. The name was first borne in America by Virginia Dare in 1587, the first child born in the Americas to English parents; she was named after the Virginia colony on Roanoke Island in modern-day North Carolina, which was itself named after the 'Virgin Queen' Elizabeth I. The child's subsequent mysterious disappearance along with the rest of the ill-fated colony became the source of an enduring American folklore. The French form of the name was later popularized in France by the Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre romance tragedy novel Paul et Virginie (1787). Ginata (Spanish), Ginni (English), Vegenia (Hawaiian), Vergie (English), Virgina (English), Virginie (French), Virgy (English), Virjeana (English), and Wilikinia (Hawaiian) are variant forms of Virginia. Other variants of Virginia include the short form Virna (Italian), and the pet forms Gin (English), Gina (Spanish), Ginger (English), Gini (English), Ginia (English and Spanish), Ginie (English), Ginney (English), Ginnie (English), Ginny (English), Giny (English), Jenny (English and German), Jin (English), Jini (English), Jinny (English), Vinnie (English), Vinny (English), Virgie (English), and Vita (English). Virginia is a classic favorite. At present it is still a rather popular baby girl name, but not to the degree it was in the past. Its usage peaked in 1922 with 1.535% of baby girls being given the name Virginia. It was #7 in rank then. The baby name has experienced a steep loss in popularity since then, and is today of modest use. In 2008, its usage was only 0.026% and its ranking #562, but it was nonetheless the most popular among all girl names in its family. In 2008, Virginia was used 7.347% more than the next most popular name, Jenny (English and German). The name Virginia has been primarily given to girls, though it has also been used as a boy name in the last century. In 1941, 230 times as many girls than boys were given the name Virginia. Baby names that sound like Virginia include Virgina (English), Virginie (French), Virjeana (English), and Virgen (Spanish). Details of famous persons named Virginia: KEY: Pronunciation for Virginia: V as in "vee (V.IY)" ; ER as in "hurt (HH.ER.T)" ; JH as in "gee (JH.IY)" ; IH as in "it (IH.T)" ; N as in "knee (N.IY)" ; Y as in "yield (Y.IY.L.D)" ; AH as in "hut (HH.AH.T)"   |
