Origin: |
Ramona is the feminine form of Ramón, the Spanish form of the Frankish Raginmund, from which we also get Raymond in English. Raginmund was composed of two prevalent name-elements. The first, ragin, translates roughly as "might" or "counsel, advice". The second element is mund, a common Germanic, Old English and Norse name element, meaning "protection." The original meaning was more "guardian, handler," ultimately derived from the Proto-Indo-European *man- "hand." |
Usage: |
Ramona dates in use in Spain and Spanish-speaking countries from at least the 16th century. 1884 saw the publication American author Helen Hunt Jackson's novel Ramona which centred around a Scots-Native American orphan girl, Ramona, as she is brought up within a Mexican household. The immediate impact of the novel cannot be seen in British birth records. Ramona was in small usage in England and Wales right up until the late 1920s, as records from the Birth Index shows: In fact, Romana's usage saw a marked leap in the last quarter of 1928 in England and Wales. This coincides with the release of the 1928 Hollywood silent film adaptation of Ramona, starring Dolores del Río in the title role, and the tile song for the film, Ramona, which became a huge hit that year. A breakdown of these births are as follows:
From 1996 to 2007 in England and Wales, Ramona ranked consistently in each year but with no more than ten births in any given year. The name saw more of a pronounced rise from 2010 when it reached #1472 with 20 births. Since then, Ramona has continued to have more than than 20 births each year, peaking at #1098 with 32 births in 2013. In 2016, Ramona ranked #1525 with 21 births in England and Wales. |
Famous Bearers: |
History: * Ramona Davies (1909−1972), American cabaret singer and pianist. Contemporary: * Ramona Lofton (born 1950), better known by her pen name Sapphire, is an American author and performance poet. Literature and Other Media: * Ramona, main character in the 1884 Ramona novel by Helen Hunt Jackson. |
Variants: |
Raymonde (French), Raimunde (German), Raimonda (Italian) |
Pronunciation: |
rə-MŌ-nə [key] |
Possible diminutives: |
Remy, Romy, Ray, Mona, Money |
Sibling Names: |
Tamsin Loretta Monica Lorna Greta Gianna |
Name Lists: |
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Thanks to Alice for requesting this name.