Anna (name)

Anna is a feminine given name, the Latin form of the Hebrew name Hannah (Hebrew: חַנָּה, romanized: Ḥannāh), meaning "favour" or "grace". It is the name of Samuel's mother in the Hebrew Bible, rendered Ἄννα in Greek, Hannah in English, and Anna in Latin. The Greek form also appears in the New Testament story of Anna the Prophetess. Anna is in wide use in countries across the world as are its variants Ana, Ann (originally the English spelling), and Anne which was originally a French version of the name though has been used in English speaking countries for hundreds of years. The name has also been used for numerous saints and queens. The name is also found in Virgil's Aeneid, where Anna appears as the sister of Dido advising her to keep Aeneas in her city.