Diane

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A female given name of French origin often associated with a Roman goddess of the hunt and the moon, also used as a personal identifier for women
2. A woman's first name derived from ancient mythology referring to a deity linked to nature and wildlife, serving as a common personal designation
3. A proper noun typically used as a feminine name rooted in classical mythology representing a goddess connected to hunting and lunar themes, also applied as an individual's name

Etymology: The name comes from Latin "Diāna," the goddess of the hunt, the moon and wild places, whose Roman cult drew on older Italian traditions. In English it usually appears in the anglicized form "Diane," which reflects its French spelling. That French form is a doublet of the English name "Diana," meaning the two words share a Latin ancestor but reached English by different routes, one as a learned classical name and the other through French. The spelling "Diane" is therefore less a separate word than a second way of writing the same name. Both forms were used for the goddess and for women bearing the name, and the French-influenced spelling became especially common as a given name in its own right.

Synonyms: diana