Meaning & History
Rexana is a modern English feminine variant of Rexanne, itself a creative blend of the royal name Rex and Roxane, a French form of Roxana. The shared root of these names goes back to the Old Persian or Bactrian element *rauxšnā, meaning "bright, shining".
Etymology and Historical Background
Rexana’s lineage ultimately traces to the ancient Greek name Ῥωξάνη (Rhoxane), which is the Hellenized form of an Old Persian or Bactrian name. The Old Iranian meaning "bright, shining" is apt for a name that first gained prominence through Roxana, the wife of Alexander the Great. Roxana (c. 340–310 BC) was the daughter of the Bactrian nobleman Oxyartes, and she married Alexander in 327 BC after his conquest of Bactria. Her legendary devotion and tragic story contributed to the name’s enduring appeal.
The revival of the ancient name in the West began during the 17th century, especially after Daniel Defoe’s 1724 novel Roxana: The Fortunate Mistress, which popularized the form Roxana in English literature. Variants proliferated: French gave Roxane (later used by Edmond Rostand for Cyrano’s beloved), and English created Roxanne, plus the shortened forms Roxie and Roxy.
Rexanne resulted from the blending of Rex (from Latin rēx, “king”) with Roxane, perhaps suggested by the phonetic similarity or by the appeal of something regal and antique. Rexana follows as a further embellishment—an -a ending making it sound more feminine and polished. Though Rare, Rexana tiptoes right along that track of Victorian derived familiarity found typical among many more elaborate traditionalistic given names fashioned out during recent generations.