Nova

Nova: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “new”
Origin: Latin
Say it: NOH-vuh · 2 syllables
Used for: Girls (94% of all uses)

From Latin nova, feminine of novus 'new'. Also the astronomical term for a suddenly brightening star, which strongly shapes modern name associations.

English names Spanish names Portuguese names Names meaning star Modern names International names

How popular is Nova?

20241,568 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Nova in 20245,220

2024 rank#39 girls

Peak year2022

Total US babies since 188054,140

Nova is rising: use over the last five years is 10.2× what it was a decade earlier.

Names like Nova

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Novahmodern spelling of Nova · American (modern coinage)
Camilayoung ceremonial attendant · Latin
Lunamoon · Latin
Auroradawn · Latin
Emilyrival · Latin
Norahonor · Latin
Lucylight · Latin
Gracegrace; favor · Latin

Nova questions

What does the name Nova mean?

Nova means "new". It comes from Latin. From Latin nova, feminine of novus 'new'. Also the astronomical term for a suddenly brightening star, which strongly shapes modern name associations.

Is Nova a boy or girl name?

Nova is mainly a girl's name in US records (94% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Nova?

5,220 US babies were named Nova in 2024. Its peak year was 2022.

How do you pronounce Nova?

Nova is usually pronounced NOH-vuh.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.