Vanna () is a

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...

that first appeared in recorded European history circa 1294. The Italian medieval feminine name originated in Tuscany, and is particular to Florence, Italy. Though similar in pronunciation to the Italian name

Giovanna Giovanna is an Italian feminine first name. It is the feminine counterpart of the masculine Giovanni, which in turn is the Italian form of John; it is thus the Italian equivalent of Jane, Joanna, Jeanne, etc. In Brazil, the feminine name Giova ...

, and conjectured to be derived from it, Vanna is neither a nickname nor a derivation.

History

The name Vanna first appears in print in '' La Vita Nuova'', a 1294 book of verse written by Dante Alighieri, an Italian Florentine poet. In one verse, Dante writes that (anthropomorphized) Love itself proclaims that Vanna is ''Primavera'' ("Springtime") and declares that

Beatrice Beatrice may refer to: * Beatrice (given name) Places In the United States * Beatrice, Alabama, a town * Beatrice, Humboldt County, California, a locality * Beatrice, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Beatrice, Indiana, an unincorporated ...

's name is "Love". Vanna is also a Cambodian unisex name ( ) meaning "Gold". It originates from ancient Sanskrit .

Cambodian name Cambodian names (or Khmer names; ) are names used or originating in Cambodia which usually consist of two elements including a patronymic, which serves as a common family name for siblings, followed by a given name (i.e. following the Eastern na ...

s are chosen for various themes such as Nature and positive attributes.

Variations

Vannetta; Vanetta; Vannina; Vanni, similar to the first name

Ivanna Ivana ( sr, Ивана) is a feminine given name of Slavic origin that is also popular in southern Ireland, France, French-speaking Canada, the Mediterranean and Latin America. It is the feminine form of the name Ivan, which are both the Slavic ...

Meanings and usage

The name Vanna is particular to the Tuscan province of Italy where usage originated during the Renaissance and became popular as a feminine first given name. ''Vanna'' is the feminine root form of ''Giovanni'', the Italian cognate of John, meaning "God is gracious". An Italian variant that closely resembles the name but was a family name and not in usage as a first or given name is the rare surname ''vanno'', from ancient Latin meaning "she who sifts" (or "assesses") and "merit". Vanna is a Cambodian given name to either females or males and means "golden" and "golden colored". In Hebrew, Vanna means "God's gift". The Russian and Czech variation ''Ivanna'' means "God is gracious". Van is short for the

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

variation Evan, meaning "Youth" and "God's grace". The Italian Name day is July 23, in memory of the Blessed Vanna of

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

, who died in 1306.

In popular culture

Literature

* '' La Vita Nuova'', by Dante Alighieri (1294). Vanna is a character inspired and named for a Florentine lady who was the best friend of Beatrice, his true love whom he later immortalizes in '' The Divine Comedy'' as the pure soul who awaits him at the gates of heaven. * Poetry by

Ezra Pound Ezra Weston Loomis Pound (30 October 1885 – 1 November 1972) was an expatriate American poet and critic, a major figure in the early modernist poetry movement, and a Fascism, fascist collaborator in Italy during World War II. His works ...

: ** The Alchemist. In a chant for the transmutation of metals, Pound invokes: "''Vanna, Mandetta, Viera, Alodetta, Picarda, Manuela / From the red gleam of copper, ..O Queen of Cypress, / Out of Erebus, out of the flat waste of air, lying beneath the world; / Out of the brown leaf-brown colourless / Bring the imperceptible cool."'' ** The Cantos. The last line of the Canto 93 describes (''"un lume pien' di spiriti"'') "a light full of the spirits

f love F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hi ...

" and finishes with (''"e Monna Vanna . . . tu mi fai rimembrar"'') ''"and Monna adyVanna, you cause me to remember aradise"''

Theater, television, film

* ''Star Trek'' - Vanna is a character in the original ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...

'' television series episode " The Cloud Minders" (1969). * ''Monna Vanna'', by Maurice Maeterlinck (1902). The play was the first success in the writer's literary career that, in 1911, was honored with the Nobel Prize for literature.

Ayn Rand Alice O'Connor (born Alisa Zinovyevna Rosenbaum;, . Most sources transliterate her given name as either ''Alisa'' or ''Alissa''. , 1905 – March 6, 1982), better known by her pen name Ayn Rand (), was a Russian-born American writer and p ...

referred to ''Monna Vanna'' "...one of the greatest plays in all of world literature". ''Monna Vanna'' played on every important stage in Europe, except in England, where it was prohibited by censors until 1914. The play was produced in Hollywood in 2007 by the Stella Adler theater, the first time since the 20th century.

Painting

* ''Monna Vanna'', by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1866)A new Kind of Beauty: Rossetti's Monna Vanna
/ref> * '' Dante and Beatrice'', by Henry Holiday (1883) * ''Monna Vanna'', a nude version of the ''Mona Lisa'' painted by Salaì (Gian Giacomo Caprotti da Oreno), a pupil of Leonardo da Vinci. (''Monna'' was the Renaissance title for "Lady", e.g., Mona Lisa, Monna Vanna).

Music

* '' Monna Vanna'', unfinished opera by

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

* '' Monna Vanna'', opera in 4 acts by Henry Février * ''Monna Vanna'', opera in 3 acts by Emil Ábrányi * ''Monna Vanna'', opera in 4 acts by Nicolae Brânzeu * '' Vanna'', a

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. It was initially inspired by post-punk and noise rock. Like post-punk, the term has been ...

band * '' Vanna'', a Croatian pop singer

People

* Monna (Lady) Vanna, thirteenth century muse and love of Florentine poet

Guido Cavalcanti Guido Cavalcanti (between 1250 and 1259 – August 1300) was an Italian poet. He was also a friend and intellectual influence on Dante Alighieri. Historical background Cavalcanti was born in Florence at a time when the comune was beginning its ...

* Vanna Bonta (born 1958), American novelist, poet and actress * Vanna Brosio (1943–2010), Italian singer, television personality and journalist *

Vanna Rosenberg Vanna Felicia Rosenberg Synnerholm (born 3 April 1973 in Farsta, Stockholm Municipality) is a Swedish singer and actor. She is married to the film producer Ulf Synnerholm. Career Rosenberg started doing plays as a kindergarten-child; her mother ...

(born 1973), Swedish singer and actress *

Vanna Vanni Vanna Vanni (7 January 1915 – 6 March 1998) was an Italian film actress. She was in thirty-one films between 1930 and 1943. Life and career Vanni was born in Florence as Maria Angelica Giovanna Pegna. She has been described as a graceful a ...

(1920–1998), Italian film actress * Vanna White (born 1957), American game show hostess

References

*Dante, ''Vita Nuova''. Milano, Garzanti, 1982. *Tobias Eisermann, Cavalcanti oder die Poetik der Negativität, Band 17 in Romanica et Comparatistica: Sprach- und literaturwissenschaftliche Studien, herausgegeben von Richard Baum und Willi Hirdt, Tübingen: Stauffenburg Verlag Brigitte Narr GmbH, 1992; ISBN *AA.VV., ''Antologia della poesia italiana'', ed C.Segre and C. Ossola. Torino, Einaudi, 1999 *Migliorini, B. ''Storia della lingua Italiana''. Firenze, Sansoni, 1987