Nanna

Meaning & origin●

Attested across 7 languages in the etymology graph.

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Nanna is also recorded as 5 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• English given name14K records spelled Nanna12 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, Netherlands, Germany, Nigeria

  Languages: English, German, Western Frisian

  Also written Naenna, Nänna, Nan-Na

• Hindi given name6.7K records spelled Nanna4 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in India, Nigeria, United States, Finland

  Languages: Hindi, Urdu

  Also written Nannã

• a separate given name3.8K records spelled Nanna2 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in India, United States, Nigeria, Pakistan

  Also written Nannā

• French given name744 records spelled Nanna4 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in France, United States, Spain, Sweden

  Languages: French, Catalan

  Also written Nannä, Nânná

• Chinese given name249 records spelled Nanna2 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Finland, United States, India, China

  Also written Nan-Na

50 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Nanna is also recorded in 5 other lexicons, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In Finnish, sweet, candy

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

• In Swedish, Nanna är ett nordiskt namn, som har föreslagits vara bildat till den germanska stammen *nanþ- ’våga, vara djärv’ (jfr → Ferdinand, → Roland). Det kan också vara en barnspråks form av → Anna. I den nordiska mytologin är Nanna asaguden Balders maka. I den rikssvenska almanackan 3 april och i den finlandssvenska 9 juli.

  as a name·Förnamn i Sverige. Kortfattat namnlexikon

• In German, ) Nanne: weibl. Vom., aus der

  as a name·DUDEN Lexikon der Vornamen

• Scandinavian: from the Old Norse mythological woman's name Nanna, a derivative of the element nanp daring.

  as a word

• In scn, grandmother, grandma; female equivalent of nannu

  as a word·kaikki.org Wiktionary extract (IPA + transliterations)

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

IN naampy — India given names from state electoral rolls (in-rolls) — 85 years between 1914–2015. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Nanna Svartzb. 1890SESweden's first female professor (1890-1986)
• Nan Brittonb. 1896USnot in their usual nameMistress of Warren G. Harding (1896–1991)
• Nanna Egediusb. 1913NONorwegian figure skater (1913-1986)
• Nanna Ditzelb. 1923DKDanish furniture designer (1923–2005)
• Nanna Kristín Magnúsdóttirb. 1974ISIcelandic actor
• Oh Landb. 1985DKnot in their usual nameDanish singer-songwriter and record producer
• Nanna Blondellb. 1986SESwedish actress
• Nanna Vainiob. 1991FIbadminton player
• Nanna Skodborg Merraldb. 1993DKDanish dressage rider
• Nanna Koerstz Madsenb. 1994DKDanish golfer (1994-)

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 457 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Nanna?

We estimate roughly 18 thousand people bear Nanna (counting its spellings and scripts) across 10 countries in our records.

In which country does Nanna have the most bearers?

We estimate about 13 thousand people bear Nanna in Denmark, more than in any other country in our records, where it is most often spelled nanna.

Where is Nanna most common?

Nanna is densest in Denmark, where the national register counts about 1 in 457 people carrying it.

How common is Nanna compared with other names?

In Denmark, Nanna is the 106th most common given name of 31,396 given names recorded there.

Is Nanna a male or female name?

Nanna is a female name in our records. Opposite-gender entries fall within the cross-gender noise we measure in the source data, so we don't report them as usage.

What does the name Nanna mean?

Recorded meaning: either from a feminine form of the personal name Nanno (see Nanni), or from an pet form of the female personal name Marianna.