Anya, Ania or Anja 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 f ...

. The names are feminine in most East European countries and unisex in several African countries.

Origins and variant forms

* Anya (Аня) is a

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

diminutive of

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna of East Anglia, King (died c.654) * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th c ...

. * Ania is the spelling in

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

, which is also a diminutive of Anna. * The spelling Anja is common in Croatian, Norwegian, Danish,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

, Swedish, Finnish,

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

, Slovenian,

Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Macedonia * Mac ...

, Montenegrin, Bosnian,

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

. * Anya is sometimes used as an

anglicisation Anglicisation or anglicization is a form of cultural assimilation whereby something non-English becomes assimilated into or influenced by the culture of England. It can be sociocultural, in which a non-English place adopts the English language ...

of the Irish name

Áine Áine () is an Irish goddess of summer, wealth, and sovereignty. She is associated with midsummer and the sun,MacKillop, James (1998) ''Dictionary of Celtic Mythology'' Oxford: Oxford University Press pp.10, 16, 128 and is sometimes represent ...

* Anya is an old

Kurdish Kurdish may refer to: *Kurds or Kurdish people *Kurdish language ** Northern Kurdish (Kurmanji) **Central Kurdish (Sorani) **Southern Kurdish ** Laki Kurdish *Kurdish alphabets *Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes: **Southern ...

name. It means "strength" or "power". * Anya is a Hungarian word for "mother". * Anya is a Nigerian

Igbo Igbo may refer to: * Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria * Igbo language, their language * anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria See also * Ibo (disambiguation) * Igbo mythology * Igbo music * Igbo art * * Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...

name, and also a word for "eye." * Anya is a variant of the Sanskrit name Aanya, meaning "inexhaustible"

People with the given name Anya

Anya Ayoung-Chee Anya Ayoung-Chee is a Trinidadian host, fashion designer, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was Miss Universe Trinidad and Tobago 2008 and was a contestant in the Miss Universe 2008 pageant. She was the winner of '' Project Runway''s ...

(born 1981), former Miss Trinidad and Tobago and winner of season 9 of ''Project Runway'' *

Anya Chalotra Anya Chalotra (born ) is an English actress. She began her career in a 2017 production of the play '' Much Ado About Nothing'' at Shakespeare's Globe, and made her screen debut with BBC dramas '' Wanderlust'' and '' The ABC Murders'' in 2018. Sh ...

, British actress *

Anya Corke Anya Sun Corke (born 12 September 1990 in California, USA) is an American-born English chess player holding the title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She played for Hong Kong, where she was the top ranked chess player, until 2009. Career Corke e ...

(born 1990), grandmaster and the top female chess player in Hong Kong *

Anya Gallaccio Anya Gallaccio (born 1963) is a Scottish artist, who creates site-specific, minimalist installations and often works with organic matter (including chocolate, sugar, flowers and ice). Her use of organic materials results in natural processe ...

(born 1963), Scottish artist *

Anya Garnis Anna "Anya" Garnis ( Russian: Анна "Аня" Гарнис; born May 26, 1982) is a Latvian ballroom dancer based in New York City. In 2007 she was a contestant on the American reality television show '' So You Think You Can Dance.'' In 200 ...

(born 1982), Siberian ballroom and Latin dancer *

Anya Geraldine Nur Amalina Hayati (born 15 December 1995), known as Anya Geraldine, is an Indonesian actress, internet celebrity, and model. Her career in entertainment began in 2016 as an internet celebrity and model. Anya Geraldine made her acting debut in ...

(born 1995), Indonesian actress and model * Anja Haga (born 1968), Dutch politician *

Anya Hindmarch Dame Anya Susannah Hindmarch, (; born 7 May 1968) is an English fashion accessories designer who founded an eponymous company, of which she is CEO. Hindmarch published her first book, ''If In Doubt Wash Your Hair'' in May 2021, a ''The Sunda ...

(born 1968), British fashion designer * Anya Kamenetz (born 1980), American writer and journalist * Anya Lahiri (born 1982), English singer * Anya Major (born 1966), British athlete, actress, model and singer * Anya Marina (born 1976), American singer-songwriter *

Anya Monzikova Anya Monzikova (; born August 25, 1984) is a Russian-American model and actress, best known for being a suitcase model on the American game show, ''Deal or No Deal'' (2006–2009). Early life Monzikova was born in Vologda, Russian SFSR, Soviet U ...

(born 1984), Russian-American model and actress *

Anya Schiffrin Anya Schiffrin (born December 6, 1962) is the director of the Technology, Media, and Communications (TMaC) specialization at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), and a senior lecturer at the School of Internati ...

(born 1962), American journalist and writer, international business professor at Columbia University *

Anya Seton Anya Seton (January 23, 1904 – November 8, 1990), born Ann Seton, was an American author of historical fiction, or as she preferred they be called, " biographical novels". Early life and education Anya Seton was born Ann Seton on January 23, ...

(1904–1990), American author of historical romances *

Anya Shrubsole Anya Shrubsole (born 7 December 1991) is an English former cricketer who played as a right-arm medium pace bowler and right-handed lower-order batter. She played for England between 2008 and 2022, and played domestic cricket for Somerset, Ber ...

(born 1991), English cricketer * Anya Singh (born 1992), Indian actress * Anya Taranda (1915–1970), American model *

Anya Taylor-Joy Anya-Josephine Marie Taylor-Joy (; born 16 April 1996) is an actress. Born in Miami and raised in Buenos Aires and London, she left school at the age of 16 to pursue an acting career. After a series of small television roles, her Breakthrough ...

(born 1996), actress * Anya Teixeira (1913–1992), Ukrainian-born British street photographer * A'nya, Russo-Japanese talent Anna Murashige's nickname

People with the given name Anja

* Anja Althaus (born 1982), German handball player *

Anja Andersen Anja Jul Andersen (born 15 February 1969 in Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185 ...

(born 1969), Danish handball player * Anja Barugh (born 1999), New Zealand freestyle skier * Anja Blacha (born 1990), German mountaineer *

Anja Daems Anja Daems (born 26 May 1968) is a Belgian radio presenter and television host. Biography Daems spent her childhood in Geel. She studied at the Conservatory in Antwerp. During her last year of study she started working as a reporter at Radio 2. ...

(born 1968), Belgian television and radio presenter *

Anja Garbarek Anja Garbarek (born 24 July 1970 in Oslo, Norway) is a Norwegian singer-songwriter. She was raised in Oslo. Career Garbarek's debut album, ''Velkommen Inn'' (1992), is sung in Norwegian. She subsequently released three original albums cont ...

(born 1970), Norwegian musician * Anja Hammerseng-Edin (born 1983), Norwegian handball player * Anja Hazekamp (born 1968), Dutch politician *

Anja Pärson Anja Sofia Tess Pärson (; born 25 April 1981) is a Swedish former alpine skier. She is an Olympic gold medalist, seven-time gold medalist at the World Championships, and two-time overall Alpine Skiing World Cup champion. This included winn ...

(born 1981), Swedish alpine skier *

Anja Plaschg Soap&Skin is the experimental musical project of Austrian artist Anja Plaschg (born 5 April 1990). Life Anja Plaschg grew up in a small village called Katzendorf near Gnas in southeast Styria, where her parents have a farm. She has played pia ...

(born 1990), alias Soap&Skin, Austrian musician * Anja Ringgren Lovén (born 1978), Danish charity worker *

Anja Rubik Anja Rubik (born Anna Helena Rubik; 12 June 1983)Statement on talk-show '' Kuba Wojewódzki'' (in Polish) of the 23 March 2010. is a Polish model, activist, philanthropist and entrepreneur. She is one of the most prominent models of the 20th and ...

(born 1983), Polish fashion model * Anja Sodnikar (born 2003), Austrian singer-songwriter *

Anja Spasojević Anja Spasojević (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Cyrillic: Ања Спасојевић; born 4 July 1983) is a retired Serbian professional volleyball player who was last played as wing spiker for VC Dynamo Krasnodar, Dinamo Krasnodar in Russia. She b ...

(born 1983), Serbian professional volleyball player * Anja Strømme, ionospheric physicist *

Anja Vanrobaeys Anja M. M. G. Vanrobaeys (born 19 November 1968) is a Belgian politician and member of the Chamber of Representatives. A member of Vooruit, she has represented East Flanders since June 2019. Vanrobaeys was born on 19 November 1968 in Lüdensch ...

(born 1968), Belgian politician

People with the given name Ania

Ania (singer) Anna Monika "Ania" Dąbrowska (; born 7 January 1981), usually referred to as Ania (), is a Polish people, Polish singer, songwriter, and composer performing pop music. Ania rose to stardom in 2004 with the release of ''Samotność po zmierzchu ...

(born 1981), Polish singer and composer *

Ania Marson Ania Marson (born 22 May 1949) is an Anglo-Polish actress. Her roles include playing the Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia in ''Nicholas and Alexandra'' (1971), and the demon Voleth Meir, 'the Deathless Mother' in ''The Witcher'' (2021). ...

, Polish actress * Ania Said Chaurembo, Tanzanian politician * Ania Walwicz (1951–2020), Australian poet and prose writer * Ania Wiśniewska (born 1977), Polish singer

Fictional characters

* Aanya, the Queen of Duren from

The Dragon Prince ''The Dragon Prince'', known as ''The Dragon Prince: Mystery of Aaravos'' from the fourth season onward, is an Animated series, animated Fantasy television, fantasy television series created by Aaron Ehasz and Justin Richmond for Netflix. Prod ...

* Anya, daughter of the Marvel Comics character

Magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

* Anya, or Princess Ann, a character in the film ''

Roman Holiday ''Roman Holiday'' is a 1953 American romantic comedy film directed and produced by William Wyler. It stars Audrey Hepburn as a princess out to see Rome on her own and Gregory Peck as a reporter. Hepburn won an Academy Award for Best Actress f ...

'' *

Anya Anya, Ania or Anja is a given name. The names are feminine in most East European countries and unisex in several African countries. Origins and variant forms * Anya (Аня) is a Russian diminutive of Anna. * Ania is the spelling in Polish ...

, or Princess Anastasia, protagonist of the 1997 film ''

Anastasia Anastasia (from ) is a feminine given name of Greek and Slavic origin, derived from the Greek word (), meaning "resurrection". It is a popular name in Eastern Europe. Origin The name Anastasia originated during the Early Christianity, early d ...

'' * Anya, in the video game '' Diablo II: Lord of Destruction'' * Anya, in the video game '' Mouthwashing'' * Anya, in the video game '' Project I.G.I.'' *

, in the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'' * Anastasia "Anya" Yurievna Cocolova, in the manga series ''Negima! Magister Negi Magi''as * Anya, in the television series '' The 100'' * Anya Alstreim, in the anime series ''Code Geass'' *

Anya Amasova Major Anya Amasova (a.k.a. Agent XXX) is a fictional character in the 1977 James Bond film '' The Spy Who Loved Me'', portrayed by Barbara Bach. Amasova is an agent of the KGB. Biography After the theft of a submarine, M (Bernard Lee) recalls ...

, in the film ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' * Anya Borzakovskaya, in the graphic novel ''

Anya's Ghost ''Anya's Ghost'' is a coming-of-age story, coming-of-age ghost story in graphic novel format. The first book by cartoonist Vera Brosgol, ''Anya's Ghost'' was published on June 7, 2011. In the novel, unpopular Anya befriends the ghost of Emil ...

'' * Anya Claus, in the film '' Santa Claus: The Movie'' *

Anya Corazon Aña "Anya" Sofia Corazón (surname alternatively shown without diacritic, Corazon, over the years) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Marvel editor-in-chief Joe Quesada, writer Fiona Avery, ...

, in Marvel Comics *

Anya Forger Anya, Ania or Anja is a given name. The names are feminine in most East European countries and unisex in several African countries. Origins and variant forms * Anya (Аня) is a Russian diminutive of Anna. * Ania is the spelling in Polish, w ...

, in the manga and anime series ''

Spy × Family ''Spy × Family'' (stylized as ''SPY×FAMILY'' and pronounced "spy family") is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tatsuya Endo. The story follows Loid Forger, an enigmatic spy who has to "build a family" to execute a missio ...

'' * Anya Hepburn, in the manga series ''Soul Eater Not!'' *

Anya Jenkins Anya Christina Emmanuella Jenkins (born as Aud) is a fictional character created by Joss Whedon for the television series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. Portrayed by Emma Caulfield, she appears as a recurring guest in the third and fourth seasons ...

, in the television series ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...

'' * Anya MacPherson, in the television series ''Degrassi: The Next Generation'' * Anya Oliwa, in the video game '' Wolfenstein: The New Order'' * Anya Stroud, in the video game series ''

Gears of War ''Gears of War'' (also referred to as ''Gears'') is a media franchise centered on a series of video games created by Epic Games, developed and managed by The Coalition (company), The Coalition, and owned and published by Xbox Game Studios. The ...

'' * Ania Williams, in the soap opera ''Family Affairs'' * Anya Beletskaya, in the

VOCALOID is a singing Speech synthesis, voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project between Yamaha Corporation and the Music Technology Group at Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona. The s ...

song series ''Parties are for Losers'' * Anastasia "Anya", a character in the video game ''The Idolmaster: Cinderella''

People with the surname Anya

* Ikechi Anya (born 1988), Scottish footballer

References

{{given name, type=both Slavic feminine given names Serbian feminine given names Feminine given names