Given name
Tonya
In English use, Tonya is a diminutive of Antonia. In Latin use, Antonia carries the interpretation “priceless and highly praiseworthy; a flourishing flower.”
Original RussianТо́ня
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Tonya is a diminutive of Antonia. In Latin use, Antonia carries the interpretation “priceless and highly praiseworthy; a flourishing flower.”
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English usage, Tonya is a diminutive of Antonia. In English usage, Tonya is a diminutive of Antonina.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1923. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Tonya through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 120,856
- 435 boys · 120,421 girls
- Most popular year
- 1972
- 7,273 babies
- 2025
- 11
- #9,412 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −23%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 11 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 9,412 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 22.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 7,244 in 1972. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 100,565 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.
Tonya’s family of names
In English usage, Tonya is a diminutive of Antonia. Tonya has a related form in Toni. In English usage, Tonya has a conventional equivalent in the German form Toni.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Tonya has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Russian roots to each of them.
Russianwhere Tonya comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 8
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 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Tonya
- Tonya HardingAmerican figure skaterborn 1970
- Tonya VerbeekOlympic wrestlerborn 1977
- Tonya Pinkinsactress, singer, writer, activist, authorborn 1962
- Tonya WilliamsCanadian actress, producer, and activist (born 1958)
- Teee Sandersvolleyball playerborn 1968
- Tonya KinzingerAmerican actressborn 1968
- Tonya EvingerAmerican mixed martial artistborn 1984
- Tonya EdwardsAmerican basketball player-coachborn 1968
- Tonya CroweAmerican actressborn 1971
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Tonya, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Marya
“star of the sea” · “from the sea of bitterness”
>99% girls
Tina
Tina is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the river; also shortened torm of names ending in -tina.”
>99% girls
Toinette
In French use, Toinette carries the interpretation “priceless and highly praiseworthy; a flourishing flower.”
>99% girls
Sliwa
“plum tree”
—
Lechsinska
“a beautiful maiden of the forest”
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Lisnic
“forest dweller”
—
Tamara
“date palm” · “from the palm tree”
>99% girls
Tine
“of the river” · “from the river”
>99% girls