Polina (given name)

Polina is a feminine given name with roots in the Greek and Latin languages. It is most widely used in Eastern Slavic cultures such as Belarus, Russia and Ukraine.^[1] It is sometimes a short form of the name Apollinariya, a feminine form of the ancient Greek name Apollinaris, a name derived from the Greek god Apollo.^[2][3] In Greek mythology Apollo was the son of Zeus and Leto and the twin of Artemis. He was the god of prophecy, medicine, music, art, law, beauty, and wisdom. Later he also became the god of the sun and light.^[4] Apollinaris is the name of several ancient Christian saints. Saint Apollonia was an early Christian martyr venerated in the Catholic Church and the patron saint of dentists and those battling problems with their teeth.^[5] The Life of Saint Apolinaria involves a holy woman and ascetic living as a male monk. She is venerated especially in Eastern Orthodox churches.

Polina could also be seen as a variant spelling of the name Paulina, a feminine form of the name Paul or Paulus, or Pauline which is a French form of Paulina, a female version of Paulinus, a variant of Paulus meaning the little, hence the younger.

The corresponding form for the name in Italian is Paolina (Paula corresponds to Paola). In Russian, the corresponding name is Полина (pronounced Palina). A Finnish form of the name is Pauliina; in Greece it is Παυλίνα or Πωλίνα (Paulina, pronounced Pavleena or Paulina, Poleena). In French, other diminutives of Paula exist, namely Paulette and Pauletta.

The name Polina is ranked on the 5,384th position of the most used names. It means that this name is commonly used. It's estimated that there are at least 55,600 persons in the world having this name which is around 0.001% of the population.^[6] Polina was the second most popular name given to baby girls born in Moscow, Russia in 2007.^[7]