# Shona (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/shona/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Scottish Gaelic |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈʃəʊnə/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 2,414 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 0 / 2,414 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 1,529, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Scottish Anglicized form of Seonag ( =Joan) and an American variant of Shauna.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 9 | 10,977 |
| 2003 | 7 | 13,632 |
| 2004 | 10 | 10,573 |
| 2005 | 14 | 8,267 |
| 2006 | 11 | 10,512 |
| 2007 | 7 | 15,251 |
| 2008 | 11 | 10,694 |
| 2009 | 10 | 11,355 |
| 2011 | 7 | 14,632 |
| 2012 | 11 | 10,337 |
| 2014 | 7 | 14,348 |
| 2015 | 7 | 14,297 |
| 2016 | 5 | 18,493 |
| 2021 | 5 | 17,336 |
| 2024 | 6 | 15,024 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 42 | 821 |
| 2010 | 23 | 1,332 |
| 2011 | 32 | 1,067 |
| 2012 | 15 | 1,893 |
| 2013 | 17 | 1,707 |
| 2014 | 17 | 1,702 |
| 2015 | 10 | 2,496 |
| 2016 | 11 | 2,367 |
| 2017 | 8 | 2,925 |
| 2018 | 6 | 3,518 |
| 2019 | 7 | 3,151 |
| 2020 | 6 | 3,447 |
| 2023 | 4 | 4,709 |
| 2024 | 5 | 4,192 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5,927 |

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.