Given name
Sonja
“wisdom”·“having great wisdom and foresight”
In Danish use, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. Sophia means “wisdom” in Greek. Sonja is a variant of Sophie. One Greek interpretation is “having great wisdom and foresight.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In Danish use, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. Sophia means “wisdom” in Greek. Sonja is a variant of Sophie. One Greek interpretation is “having great wisdom and foresight.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
In Danish use, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. Sophia has Greek linguistic roots and later spread into several European naming traditions. Sonja is a variant of Sophie. An origin associated with Sophie is French.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In Danish usage, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. In Danish usage, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sonya. In Danish use, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. The shared background comes through Sophia: Sophia uses the Greek noun sophia. That word also appears in the phrase Hagia Sophia, meaning “holy wisdom.”
Combines direct and name-family evidence
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1906. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In Danish use, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. The history of Sophia gives this family its wider story. Sophia became popular in England in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Sophia also has literary and screen associations, including the heroine of Tom Jones and the actress Sophia Loren.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Sonja through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 39,557
- 44 boys · 39,513 girls
- Most popular year
- 1967
- 1,343 babies
- 2025
- 37
- #3,966 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −32%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 37 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 3,966 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 32.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,339 in 1968. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 33,999 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Sonja’s family of names
In Danish usage, Sonja is an affectionate form of Sophia. In German usage, Sonja has a conventional equivalent in the French form Sonia. In German usage, Sonja has a related form in Sonia.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Sonja has relatives in 14 languages.
9 related names in 14 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 6
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 8
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Sonja
- Sonja HenieNorwegian figure skater and actress (1912–1969)
- Queen Sonja of NorwayQueen Consort of Norway (1991–2026)born 1937
- Sonja LangCanadian writer and hyperpolyglot (born 1978)
- Sonja SohnAmerican actress, activist (b. 1964)
- Sonja ZiemannGerman actress (1926–2020)
- Sonja GerhardtGerman film and television actressborn 1989
- Sonja VasićSerbian basketball player (born 1989)
- Sonja EdströmSwedish cross-country skier1930–2020
- Sonja GrafGerman-born American chess player1908–1965
Characters named Sonja: Red Sonja (fictional character).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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