Aryana

Aryana is a modern Americanized respelling of Ariana (Arianna). Arianna is the Italian equivalent of the Greek Ariadne. In Greek mythology, Ariadne was the daughter of the mortal King Minos of Crete and the goddess Pasiphaë, herself the daughter of Helios the Sun god). According to Greek legend, King Minos attacked Athens and, in an ancient form of a “peace pact”, the Athenians were required to sacrifice seven young men and maidens to the hideous half-human/half-bull monster known as the Minotaur. A young Athenian man named Theseus was one of the victims sent into the Minotaur’s maze for sacrifice, but Ariadne saw him and fell instantly in love. On the precondition that Theseus marry her, Ariadne gave him a magical sword to kill the Minotaur and a red ball of wool to guide him out of the labyrinth. Afterwards, the two lovers fled by sea and took refuge on the island of Naxos. There Theseus abandoned Ariadne while she slept. Dionysus, the god of wine and ecstasy, took pity on the girl and married her himself. The name Ariadne has been popular since medieval times around the eastern Mediterranean region, but it was actually Saint Ariadne who propelled the popularity of the name rather than the mythological damsel in distress. St. Ariadne was a 2nd century slave in a Phrygian royal household (modern day Turkey). She ran away after refusing to take part in pagan rites and found herself on a hillside. The hillside miraculously opened up, presenting Ariadne with her tomb. Her cult and legend grew in the Middle Ages when naming children after saints was a common practice. Etymologists believe that Ariadne comes from an ancient Cretan dialect from the elements “ari” (which is an intensive prefix) coupled with “adnos” meaning “holy” giving the name’s full meaning: “very holy”. Not just a little holy, but VERY holy. The Romans got the name Ariadne from the Greeks and Latinized it to Arianna. Aryana is a “yooneeklee” modern spelling of this classical name found mainly in the United States.