Given name · also Old English
Godiva
“gift from God”
Godiva is used as a given name. One English interpretation is “gift from God.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “gift from God.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Old English.
How it developed
Its Old English formation brings together god (“god”) and gyfu (“gift”).
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1958. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Godiva through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 10
- 0 boys · 10 girls
- Most popular year
- 1958
- 5 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 5 in 2017. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Godiva’s family of names
Godiva has a related form in Godgifü. Godiva has a related form in Godivah. Godiva has a related form in Godyva.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 4
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Godiva
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Godiva, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Jonni
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Ginny
“one who is chaste; virginal”
>99% girls
Sheree
Sheree is a feminine given name.
>99% girls
Johnna
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Sherill
“from the bright hill”
6% boys · 94% girls
Gina
“God is gracious” · “queen”
>99% girls
Zina
“A secret spirit” · “welcoming”
>99% girls
Belinda
“a beautiful and tender woman”
>99% girls