Etymology & Historical Origin of the Baby Name Tiana

Tiana is an English short form of the name Tatiana. Tatiana is a name of early Russian Christian origin in homage to a 3rd century saint who was martyred in Rome for her Christian beliefs under the pagan Emperor Alexander Severus. Her father had been a Roman civil servant who secretly raised Tatiana with his Christian beliefs and eventually she would become a deaconess in the Church. The Romans captured her and when she refused to pray to their god Apollo, she was blinded and tortured. Miraculously, an earthquake shook the Apollo temple and his statue fell. Unmoved, the Romans then threw her into a lion’s cage during a circus – but again, miraculously, the lions refused to come near her. Finally, she was beheaded. It certainly seems that during antiquity, the Romans loved to indiscriminately kill Christians and that Christians happily embraced death for their faith. The Church is riddled with these stories, and Tatiana is no exception. The Eastern Orthodox Church (Byzantium Empire) embraced this story more so than the western Roman Catholic Church, which is how Tatiana became particularly popular in Russia, Eastern European and other Slavic nations. St. Tatiana is also the patron saint of students. The name Tatiana is actually the feminine form of an old Roman family name Tatius, from the Latin “tatianus” of unknown origin. In Roman tradition, Titus Tatius was King of the Sabines in the 8th century B.C. who later co-ruled with Romulus over all the Sabines and Latins. Therefore, it is commonly believed that Tatiana is ultimately derived from a Sabine word now defunct with forgotten meaning. Tatiana is still mainly used in Russia (with the pet form being Tanya) and other Slavic and/or Eastern European nations. English-speakers did not adopt the name until the late 20th century. Tiana is generally thought of as the pet form of Tatiana – although it is sometimes considered a short form of Christiana as well.

All About the Baby Name – Tiana

Personality

OF THE GIRL NAME TIANA

The number Nine personality represents the completion or ending of the cycle, and a need for perfection. This is the personality that moves from "self" to a greater understanding and compassion for the human condition and the world order. They want to make the world a better place. Nines are capable of great spiritual and humanitarian achievements. They are courageous and fearless, able to fight great battles on behalf of worthy causes. These personalities will not tolerate injustice. They are compassionate people with a strong sensitivity to others. They are able to both educate and inspire. Friendships and relationships are the lifeblood to the Nine, and they place a high value on love and affection. Nines are often exceptionally gifted artistically, and they have a keen imagination and enterprising mind.

Popularity

OF THE GIRL NAME TIANA

Tiana first appeared on the American naming charts in 1975 and has been a particular favorite girl’s name for Hawaiians (the Aloha State has ranked Tiana on their Top 50 list of most popular girl names from 1983-2004). Nationwide, Tiana has experienced low to moderate levels of success since her debut in the mid-1970s. It’s unclear to us what propelled the sudden usage of Tiana in Hawaii; perhaps it has something to do with the Chinese word “Tian” meaning ‘heaven’. In the past couple of years, the lovely name Tiana has reached a wider audience. What happened? You can thank the Walt Disney Company. Tiana is a fictional character and the heroine of Disney's 2009 film “The Princess and the Frog” (loosely based on the 2002 novel “The Frog Princess” by E.D. Baker). In the Disney movie, Tiana is an African-American princess, a waitress and aspiring restaurateur living in the French Quarter of New Orleans during the Jazz Age. The name Tiana jumped an impressive 300+ positions on the charts between 2009 and 2010 – and became a favorite among African-Americans. Tiana reminds us of other Disney princesses whose names have been likewise impacted on the female naming charts (Ariel, Jasmine, and Aurora come to mind). In fact, some people insist that Tiana is the Greek word for ‘princess’ (but this is simply not true). There is no true linguistic origin for this name that we can find (except that Tiana means ‘donated’ in Swahili and Tian means ‘heaven’ in Chinese).

Quick Facts

ON TIANA

GENDER:

Girl

ORIGIN:

English

NUMBER OF SYLLABLES:

3

RANKING POPULARITY:

545

PRONUNCIATION:

tee-AN-ə

SIMPLE MEANING:

Disney Princess; Uncertain origin and meaning

Characteristics

OF TIANA

Multi-talented

Intuitive

Oneness

Idealistic

Philanthropy

Independent

Perfection

Cultural References to the Baby Name – Tiana

Literary Characters

OF THE BABY NAME TIANA

We cannot find any significant literary characters by the name of Tiana

Childrens Books

ON THE BABY NAME TIANA

We cannot find any childrens books with the first name Tiana


Popular Songs

ON TIANA

We cannot find any popular or well-known songs with the name of Tiana


Famous People

NAMED TIANA

Tiana Bighorse (writer)
Tiana Benjamin (actress)
Tiana Brown (dancer)
Tiana Lemnitz (German operatic soprano)
Tiana Xiao (J-Pop singer)

Children of Famous People

NAMED TIANA

We cannot find any children of famous people with the first name Tiana

Historic Figures

WITH THE NAME TIANA

We cannot find any historically significant people with the first name Tiana