Given name · Bulgarian · Russian · rsk
София
“Church of Holy Wisdom”
София (Sófija) is a feminine given name from Byzantine Greek. It is used in Russian, Bulgarian, and Pannonian Rusyn.
Bulgarian and Russian and rskWritten in Cyrillic script. In English: Sophia.
Meaning & origin
What it means
София goes back to a word meaning “Church of Holy Wisdom.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In Pannonian Rusyn usage, София developed from Σοφία.
София’s family of names
In English usage, София has an affectionate form in Sonia. In Pannonian Rusyn usage, София developed from the Ancient Greek form Σοφία. In Russian usage, София has a conventional equivalent in the German form Sophia.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
София has relatives in 13 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
Ancient Greekwhere София comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 18
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 6
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named София
- Sofia GubaidulinaSoviet and Russian composer (1931–2025)
- Sophia ParnokRussian writer1885–1933
- Sofia SamodurovaRussian figure skater (born 2002)
- Sophie ShevardnadzeGeorgian RT correspondentborn 1978
- Sofka SkipwithRussian princess and Righteous Among the Nations1907–1994
- Sofya Kondakovafemale speed skater for the Soviet Union (1922-2012)
- Sofia TuibayevaSoviet actress (1913-1996)
- Sofia DolgorukovaRussian noble (1887-1949)
- Sofia Sukhovo-KobylinaRussian painter (1825–1867)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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