G
Feminine
Italian
Meaning & History
Giannina is a feminine Italian given name, used as a diminutive of Giovanna, the Italian form of Joanna. The name ultimately traces back to the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "God is gracious," through the Greek Ioanna and Latin Iohanna. In the New Testament, Joanna is mentioned as a follower of Jesus (Luke 8:3) and is venerated as a saint. Giannina thus carries the meaning "God is gracious" in a distinctly Italian form.
While Giannina is recognized as a diminutive, it has achieved independent usage, especially in Italy and the Italian diaspora. Related named forms include the variant Gia and the diminutive Nina. In other languages and cultures, it has equivalents such as English as Shavon/Shavonne, Basque Jone, Ukrainian Zhanna, Polish Joanna, and Greek Ioanna—all sharing the same distant origin.
The name Giannina gained notable exposure through historical and contemporary personalities. Notable bearers include Giannina Arangi-Lombardi (1891–1951), an Italian operatic soprano; Giannina Braschi (born 1953), a Puerto Rican poet and novelist; Giannina Facio (born 1955), a Costa Rican actress; and Giannina Segnini (born 1970), a Costa Rican journalist. Others span fields such as ballet (Giannina Censi, 1913–1995), film (Giannina Chiantoni, 1881–1972), and athletics (Giannina Marchini, 1906–1976). Giannina Silva (born 1984) is a Uruguayian actress and beauty queen. In the arts, the name also appears in the title of the opera Giannina e Bernardone (1781) by Domenico Cimarosa.
Related Names
Variants
Diminutives
Other Languages & Cultures
(English)
Shavon, Shavonne (Basque)
Jone 1 (Ukrainian)
Zhanna (Polish)
Joanna (Greek)
Ioanna (Biblical Latin)
Iohanna (Breton)
Yanna 2 (French)
Yanick (Breton)
Yannic (French)
Yannick (Breton)
Yannig (Romanian)
Ioana (Slovene)
Ivana (Ukrainian)
Yana (Bulgarian)
Yanka, Yoana (Swedish)
Nina 1 (Portuguese)
Joana (Corsican)
Ghjuvanna (Slovene)
Žana, Jana 1 (Spanish (Latin American))
Johana (Czech)
Johanka (Swedish)
Johanna (Norwegian)
Johanne (Swedish)
Hanna 2 (Norwegian)
Hanne 1, Janne 2 (Dutch)
Jannie (Swedish)
Jonna, Janna (Dutch)
Hanke, Hanneke, Hannie, Jennigje, Johanneke, Joke (Greek)
Gianna (English)
Janae, Jane, Janessa, Janice (Scottish)
Jean 2 (French)
Jeanne (English)
Joan 1, Johnna, Shauna, Shawn, Shawna, Giana, Jo, Joanie, Joann (French)
Joanne (English)
Jodene, Jodi, Jodie, Jody, Joetta, Joey, Jonelle, Jonette, Joni 1, Jonie, Nena (Estonian)
Jaana 2 (Finnish)
Janika (Icelandic)
Jóna (Swedish)
Janina (Finnish)
Hannele (French)
Ninette (Galician)
Xoana (Greek)
Yanna 1, Yianna, Nana 1 (Icelandic)
Jóhanna, Jónína (Irish)
Síne, Siobhán (Latvian)
Janīna, Žanna (Serbian)
Jovana (Medieval French)
Jehanne (Norwegian)
Jannicke, Jannike (Polish)
Asia 2, Joasia (Portuguese)
Joaninha (Portuguese (Brazilian))
Geovana (Spanish (Latin American))
Giovana (Romanian)
Geanina, Gianina (Sardinian)
Giuanna (Scottish)
Seona, Sheona, Shona (Scottish Gaelic)
Seonag, Sìne (Spanish)
Juana, Juanita (Ukrainian)
Ivanna (Walloon)
Djene (Welsh)
Shan 1, Siân, Siwan
Sources: Wikipedia — Giannina