Donna is an English-language

feminine Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...

first name First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared an ...

meaning '

woman A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or Adolescence, adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functi ...

' in modern

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

, and '

lady ''Lady'' is a term for a woman who behaves in a polite way. Once used to describe only women of a high social class or status, the female counterpart of lord, now it may refer to any adult woman, as gentleman can be used for men. "Lady" is al ...

' or ' mistress' in classical Italian. The original meaning is closer to 'lady of the home' and was a title of respect in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, equivalent to '' Don'' for gentlemen or lord. It is a common

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, particularly in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, and Washington. It is rare as a

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

People with the given name

Donna Air Donna Marie Theresa Air (born 2 August 1979) is an English actress, producer and philanthropist. Early life and education Donna Marie Theresa Air was born on 2 August 1979, in Gosforth, North Tyneside, to receptionist Marie (née Lackenby) and ...

(born 1979), English actress * Donna Alvermann, American educator and researcher * Donna Andrews, American author * Donna Axum (1942–2018), American beauty pageant winner, author, television executive producer, philanthropist and model * Donna Baird, American epidemiologist and evolutionary-population biologist * Donna Barnes, American politician * Donna J. Boley (born 1935), American politician *

Donna Brazile Donna Lease Brazile ( ; born December 15, 1959) is an American political strategist, campaign manager, and political analyst who served twice as acting Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She is currently an ABC News contributor, ...

, American political

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

* Donna Bruton (1954–2012), American painter, educator *

Donna Burke } Donna Burke (born 1964) is an Australian actress, singer, and businesswoman. She primarily voices characters in anime and video games including Angela Orosco in '' Silent Hill 2'' (2001), Claudia Wolf in '' Silent Hill 3'' (2003), and has pe ...

, Australian singer, voice actress and businesswoman * Donna Christensen (born 1945), American physician and politician *

Donna Cruz Donna Cruz Yrastorza-Larrazabal (born February 14, 1977) (), is a Filipina singer and actress. Since the middle of the 1990s, she has released 8 studio albums, and featured as an actress in local films. She has also appeared on four soundtrac ...

, Filipino pop singer *

Donna Deegan Donna Hazouri Deegan (born February 28, 1961) is an American politician and former television news anchor serving as the mayor of Jacksonville, Florida since 2023. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she was elec ...

(born 1961), American politician *

Donna D'Errico Donna Jeanette D'Errico (born March 30, 1968) is an American actress. She posed for ''Playboy'' as its Playmate of the Month for September 1995 and had a starring role (1996–1998) on the television series ''Baywatch''. She continues to act i ...

, American actress * Donna Dixon, American actress * Donna Doore, American politician * Donna Douglas, American actress * Donna Edwards, American politician * Donna Fargo, American country singer * Donna M. Felling, American politician * Donna Feore (born 1963), Canadian choreographer and theatre director * Donna Ferrato (born 1949), American photojournalist and activist * Donna Gabaccia (born 1949), American historian * Donna Givens, American politician from Alabama *

Donna Gould Donna Gould (born 10 June 1966) is an Australian former athlete and cyclist. She competed in the women's 3000 metres at the 1984 Summer Olympics and the women's individual road race at the 1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics () ...

(born 1966), Australian cyclist * Donna Hanover (born 1950), American journalist, radio and television personality, and actress * Donna Howard (born 1951), American politician *

Donna Haraway Donna Jeanne Haraway (born September 6, 1944) is an American professor emerita in the history of consciousness and feminist studies departments at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and a prominent scholar in the field of science and te ...

, American philosopher * Donna Harpauer, Canadian politician * Donna Hylton, Jamaican-American kidnapper and murderer * Donna Karan, American fashion designer * Donna Kellogg (born 1978), English badminton player * Donna Kirkland, Australian politician *

Donna Kossy Donna J. Kossy (born May 18, 1957) is an American writer, zine publisher, and online used book dealer based in Portland, Oregon. Specializing in the history of "forgotten, discredited and extreme ideas", which she calls "crackpotology and kookolo ...

(born 1957), American writer *

Donna Leon Donna Leon (; born September 28, 1942) is the American author of a series of crime novels set in Venice, Italy, featuring the fictional hero Commissario Guido Brunetti. The novels are written in English and have been translated into many forei ...

(born 1942), American novelist * Donna Lewis, Welsh singer * Donna Loren (born 1947), American singer and actress, the Dr Pepper Girl in the 1960s * Donna Maguire, Provisional Irish Republican Army member * Donna Mayhew, American javelin thrower * Donna McKechnie (born 1942), American actress * Donna Mergler, Canadian physiologist * Donna Mills, American actress who played Abby Cunningham on ''Knots Landing'' * Donna Morrissey, Canadian author *

Donna Murphy Donna Murphy (born March 7, 1959) is an American actress, best known for her work in musical theater. A five-time Tony Award nominee, she has twice won the Tony for Best Actress in a Musical: for her role as Fosca in '' Passion'' (1994–1995) ...

(born 1959), American stage and film actress * Donna Nelson (born 1954), American chemist and professor * Donna Orender (born 1957), American Women's Pro Basketball League All-Star guard and former WNBA president * Donna Pescow, American actress * Donna Reed, American actress *

Donna Robertson Donna Robertson (born 24 April 1969) is a Scottish judoka and wrestler. Robertson competed in judo at the 1990 Commonwealth Games where she won a bronze medal in the Judo at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, 48kg event. She also competed in wrestli ...

(born 1969), Scottish judoka and wrester * Donna Rozar (born 1950), American politician, businesswoman, and nurse * Donna Rubin (born 1959), American tennis player * Donna Scott-Mottley, Jamaican politician * Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services under President Bill Clinton * Donna Strickland, Canadian physicist and Nobel laureate 2018 *

Donna Summer Donna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the "Queen of Disco", while her music ...

(1948–2012), American singer, notably of

disco music Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightlife, particularly in African-American, Italian-American, Gay and Latino communities. Its sound features four-on-the-floor ...

* Donna Tartt, American writer * Donna Testerman (born 1960), mathematician * Donna Vekić, Croatian tennis player * Donna Wilkes (born 1958), American actress * Donna Zuckerberg (born 1987), American classicist, feminist, and writer

Fictional characters

Donna Bishop Donna Bishop is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera ''Home and Away'', played by Nicola Quilter. She debuted on-screen during the episode airing on 8 November 1994 and departed on 23 June 1995. Casting Quilter jo ...

, character in ''

Home and Away ''Home and Away'' (''H&A'') is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Alan Bateman and commenced broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. Bateman came up with the concept of the show during a trip to Kangaroo Point, N ...

'' * Donna Cabonna, character in ''

That's So Raven ''That's So Raven'' is an American television fantasy teen sitcom that was created by Michael Poryes and Susan Sherman, and aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between January 2003 and November 2007. The series centers on Raven Baxter ( ...

'' * Donna Duck, character in the 1937 Disney short '' Don Donald'' * Donna Clark (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Emerson), a character in '' Halt and Catch Fire'' * Donna Freedman, character in ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera that has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons and ...

'' * Donna Hayward, character in ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...

'' * Donna Henshaw, a character in '' Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps'' * Donna Logan, character in ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' * Donna Ludlow, character in ''

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...

'' * Donna Martin, character in ''

Beverly Hills, 90210 ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' (often referred to as ''90210'') is an American teen drama television series created by Darren Star and produced by Aaron Spelling via his production company Spelling Television. The series ran for 10 seasons on Fo ...

'' * Donna Meagle, main character in '' Parks and Recreation'' * Donna Moss, main character in ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...

'' *

Donna Noble Donna Noble is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Portrayed by British actress and comedian Catherine Tate, she is a companion of the Tenth and Fourteenth Doctors (both portr ...

, character in ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series, created by Sydney Newman, C. E. Webber and Donald Wilson (writer and producer), Donald Wilson, depicts the adventures of an extraterre ...

'' * Donna Paulsen, character in '' Suits'' * Donna Pinciotti, character '' That 70s Show'' * Donna Sheridan in '' Mamma Mia!'' *

Donna Troy Donna Troy is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. She is the original Wonder Girl, and later temporarily adopts another alias, Troia. Created by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani, she first appeared in ''The Brave an ...

aka "Wonder Girl", character from

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

* Donna Tubbs, character in ''

The Cleveland Show ''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry (voice actor), Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A Spin-off (media), spin-off of ''Family Guy'', and the second television ...

'' * Donna Windsor, character in ''

Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British television soap opera that is broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a List of fictional towns and villages, fict ...

'' * Donna Yates, character in ''

References

{{Reflist Given names English feminine given names Italian feminine given names Feminine given names Scottish feminine given names Welsh feminine given names English-language feminine given names

People with the given name

Fictional characters

See also

References