Nina

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A feminine first name of Slavic, Spanish and Italian origin, often used as a short form of names like Antonina
2. A woman's given name commonly used in English-speaking countries and across several European languages
3. A personal first name given to girls, borrowed into English from Slavic and Romance naming traditions

Etymology: Al Hirschfeld, the American caricaturist known for his theatre portraits in The New York Times, had a habit of hiding the name of his daughter Nina in his drawings. He slipped the letters "NINA" into the fine lines of his pictures, often woven into a crowd scene, a wig, or a bit of shading, and the practice became a signature that readers of his work learned to hunt for. Over the decades, the name lodged itself in the public mind as a nickname for the hidden detail, and Nina became the name by which the girl herself was known. Nina itself is an ordinary given name with a long history in several languages, but in this entry the word traces back to one father's drawing habit. Readers who enjoy Hirschfeld's work often search his caricatures for the name, which is why the word carries a touch of playfulness.