The first name Svetlana
A girl’s name meaning “light”.
3 syllables Female
Meaning and origin
Svetlana means “light”.
Transliteration of Russian Светла́на (Svetlána), from свет (svet, “light”). Made up by Alexander Vostokov in 1802, later borrowed into English and other languages.
More names that mean light.
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity
Babies registered in England and Wales, 1996–2025
Svetlana last appeared in the official list in 2024, given to 4 girls. It peaked in 2020, with 5 births (#3,899).
Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Svetlana with other names.
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Svetlana at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 18 girls born in the United States were named Svetlana, the 6,520th most popular girls’ name that year. It was used most in 2007, when 51 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Svetlana in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Spelled Svetlana in Slovak, Slovene and Swedish too.
Nicknames and spellings
Nicknames for Svetlana
Famous people named Svetlana
12 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Svetlana AlexievichBelarusian investigative journalist and non-fiction prose writer (born 1948)
- Svetlana MedvedevaFormer First lady of Russia, born 1965
- Svetlana Dašić-KitićBosnian handball player, born 1960
- Svetlana Tširkova-LozovajaEstonian-Russian fencer and coach (born 1945)
- Svetlana AlpersArtist, art historian and critic, born 1936
- Svetlana NavasardyanArmenian pianist, born 1946
- Svetlana BeriosovaBritish ballet dancer (1932-1998)
- Svetlana BrozBosnian writer and physician, 1955–2025
- Svetlana LesevaBulgarian female high jumper, born 1967
- Svetlana KrivenchevaBulgarian tennis player, born 1973
- Lana WoodAmerican actress, born 1946
- Svetla BozhkovaBulgarian discus thrower, born 1951
Questions
- What does the name Svetlana mean?
- Svetlana means “light”.
- How popular is the name Svetlana?
- In 2024, 4 girls born in England and Wales were named Svetlana, ranking 4,843rd. Its peak was 2020, with 5 births.
- What are nicknames for Svetlana?
- Common nicknames for Svetlana include Sveta.
- Is Svetlana a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a girl's name: 100% of the 928 US babies named Svetlana since 1880 were girls.
- When was Svetlana most popular?
- 2007 in the United States, when 51 babies were named Svetlana, its highest rank at 3,327th.