Given name & surname
Dona
“woman from a city in Arizona”·“ruler of the world”
In English use, Dona is a diminutive of Sedona. One American interpretation is “woman from a city in Arizona.” Dona connects to the Donald name family through Donna. One Scottish interpretation is “ruler of the world.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Dona is a diminutive of Sedona. One American interpretation is “woman from a city in Arizona.” Dona connects to the Donald name family through Donna. One Scottish interpretation is “ruler of the world.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Dona is a variant of Donna. An origin associated with Donna is Italian. In English use, Dona is a diminutive of Sedona. An origin associated with Sedona is American.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English usage, Dona is a diminutive of Sedona.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Dona through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 19,032
- 175 boys · 18,857 girls
- Most popular year
- 1954
- 492 babies
- 2025
- 5
- #15,531 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 5 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 15,531 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for girls was 487 in 1954. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 12,121 as a first name in 2020; 914 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Dona’s family of names
In English usage, Dona is a diminutive of Sedona. Dona has a related form in Donna. In Greek usage, Dona as a surname is a transliteration of Δωνά.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
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 5
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Dona
- Dona Drakeactress, singer, dancer (1914-1989)
- Dona GangulyIndian dancerborn 1976
- Dona BaileyAmerican video game programmerborn 1955
- Dona ZicaBrazilian samba dancer1913–2003
- Dona BertarelliSwiss businesswoman, heiress and billionaireborn 1968
- Dona TorrBritish historian1883–1957
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Dona, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Dinah
“(female) judge” · “judgment”
>99% girls
Nona
“the ninth-born child”
>99% girls
Doreen
“the golden one” · “a brooding woman”
>99% girls
Dianna
Dianna is a feminine given name from Latin.
>99% girls
Debra
“bee”
>99% girls
Dori
“a gift of God” · “of the ancient Greek tribe, the Dorians”
>99% girls
Mona
“one who is born into the nobility” · “a jealous man”
>99% girls
Lorna
“crowned with laurel; from the laurel tree”
>99% girls