Sofia Name Meaning

Sofia is an alternative spelling to Sophia. The name means “wisdom,” from the Greek word sophos, meaning “wise.” The name bears traditional dignity, was popularized by the Roman Emperor Justinian who built the Church of Saint Sophia in Constantinople, and was adopted by royalty. It is a name found in much of the Christianized West. Though it originated in Greece after the time of Plato, it spread along with Christianity.

If you believe that names hold power, what better name to choose for a girl than one that gifts her with wisdom? Sofia’s soft sound carries a feminine feel that tempers that wisdom with gentleness. It also connotes knowledge, power, and bravery. Perhaps a little Sofia will be a scientist in the making or a scholar for the ages.

In Christian theology Sofia is connected to the concept of Divine Wisdom, and there are numerous saints with the name in the Catholic Church. Her deeply religious history make her an attractive choice for parents looking for a less obvious spiritual name.

This ancient name expresses the qualities that you hope she’ll have while paying homage to religious and historical traditions. Recently, the name has experienced a resurgence, entering the most popular girl names in the 2010s. Variations on the name include Sophie and Sofiya. There’s also the spunky Zofie or Sonia as alternates.

Infographic of Sofia name meaning, which is Sofia is an alternate spelling of Sophia, derived from the Greek sophos, meaning wise.
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Sofia Name Popularity

How popular is the name Sofia? Here’s everything we know.

Year Rank # Births % Births
1910 501 31 0.0088%
1911 578 22 0.0059%
1912 685 21 0.0042%
1913 656 29 0.0051%
1914 868 17 0.0024%
1915 857 28 0.0031%
1916 815 35 0.0036%
1917 783 41 0.0041%
1918 1,049 19 0.0018%
1919 974 23 0.0022%
1920 841 40 0.0036%
1921 814 46 0.004%
1922 877 37 0.0033%
1923 800 49 0.0044%
1924 846 44 0.0038%
1925 807 47 0.0042%
1926 853 39 0.0035%
1927 815 44 0.004%
1928 746 54 0.005%
1929 755 49 0.0047%
1930 677 65 0.0062%
1931 709 51 0.0052%
1932 847 31 0.0031%
1933 780 36 0.0039%
1934 898 25 0.0026%
1935 792 37 0.0038%
1936 862 27 0.0028%
1937 1,026 18 0.0018%
1938 917 26 0.0025%
1939 877 28 0.0028%
1940 850 34 0.0032%
1941 1,083 17 0.0015%
1942 1,160 17 0.0013%
1943 969 30 0.0023%
1944 1,038 23 0.0019%
1945 1,062 21 0.0017%
1946 1,045 29 0.002%
1947 1,088 30 0.0018%
1948 1,161 25 0.0016%
1949 1,082 32 0.002%
1950 968 47 0.0029%
1951 1,077 35 0.0021%
1952 1,212 24 0.0014%
1953 1,117 33 0.0019%
1954 1,129 35 0.0019%
1955 1,158 33 0.0018%
1956 1,183 36 0.0019%
1957 1,127 44 0.0023%
1958 1,162 40 0.0021%
1959 1,165 41 0.0022%
1960 1,086 53 0.0028%
1961 1,138 51 0.0027%
1962 1,039 61 0.0033%
1963 1,040 59 0.0033%
1964 977 70 0.004%
1965 943 69 0.0042%
1966 926 72 0.0046%
1967 897 80 0.0053%
1968 943 72 0.0048%
1969 839 101 0.0066%
1970 889 98 0.0062%
1971 806 121 0.0081%
1972 860 100 0.0073%
1973 816 110 0.0085%
1974 804 118 0.0091%
1975 787 127 0.0099%
1976 814 120 0.0093%
1977 716 165 0.0122%
1978 754 154 0.0115%
1979 765 158 0.0112%
1980 772 158 0.0108%
1981 661 219 0.0149%
1982 720 188 0.0126%
1983 642 219 0.0148%
1984 680 197 0.0132%
1985 663 222 0.0146%
1986 719 197 0.0131%
1987 613 268 0.0176%
1988 688 230 0.0148%
1989 643 277 0.0172%
1990 661 289 0.0174%
1991 512 410 0.0252%
1992 528 407 0.0255%
1993 454 511 0.0328%
1994 485 468 0.0305%
1995 421 579 0.0384%
1996 360 732 0.0489%
1997 250 1,145 0.0774%
1998 233 1,304 0.0871%
1999 195 1,572 0.105%
2000 161 2,066 0.1352%
2001 145 2,272 0.1508%
2002 112 3,037 0.2027%
2003 97 3,468 0.228%
2004 70 4,453 0.2922%
2005 52 5,149 0.3368%
2006 55 5,075 0.3241%
2007 36 6,039 0.3828%
2008 36 5,971 0.3863%
2009 36 5,675 0.3797%
2010 28 6,317 0.4384%
2011 19 7,323 0.514%
2012 18 7,823 0.549%
2013 13 9,157 0.6432%
2014 12 9,588 0.6581%
2015 14 9,684 0.6656%
2016 14 9,151 0.6347%
2017 15 8,126 0.5822%
2018 17 7,611 0.554%
2019 17 7,346 0.5426%
2020 17 6,837 0.5371%
2021 16 6,421 0.5253%

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Data via SSA.gov.

Names Like Sofia

If you like Sofia, you’ll love these other names like Sofia.

What names are variants of Sofia?

Mix it up with these names that are a variation of the name Sofia.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Sofiah

Wisdom

Greek

Soficita

Wisdom

Greek

Sofie

Wisdom

Greek

Sofya

Wisdom

Greek

Sonia

A Slavonic form of Sophia.

Greek

Sonja

Wisdom

Greek

Sonya

Wisdom

Greek

Sophia

Wisdom

Greek

Zofi

Wisdom

Greek

Zofia

Wisdom

Greek

Zofya

Wisdom

Greek

Zosia

Wisdom

Greek

Zsofia

Hungarian

What names sound like Sofia?

If you like how Sofia sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Sofia.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Sabella

God's promise

Latin

Sabina

Sabine

Latin

Sabrina

“The siren from the river Severn,” in allusion to a legendary princess.

Celtic

Safia

Friend; pure

African

Selena

Moon

Spanish

What names are similar to Sofia?

Find a name that’s like Sofia, but just a little bit different.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Amalia

Industrious, striving; work; rival; laborious; eager

Latin

Amelia

Work

German

Camellia

Helper to the priest

Latin

Charlotte

Free man

French

Dahlia

Dahlia flower

Scandinavian

Delia

From Delos

Greek

Emma

Whole or universal

German

Lydia

From Lydia

Greek

Sylvia

Woods, forest

Latin

Sylvie

Woods, forest

Latin

Lists With Sofia

Find inspiration in these baby girl name lists featuring the name Sofia.

Siblings of Sofia

Mamas with kids named Sofia also have kids with these names.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Samuel

Name of God

Hebrew

Madison

Son of Maud

English

Dean

Valley

English

Aava
Benjamin

A favorite son

Hebrew

20 Comments

  1. My husband and I have been talking about having a little girl for years. For some reason the name Sofia came to our mind. We have been living life speaking her name into existence for years. Now she’s here 🙂 She is half Polish and half Ecuadorian. We chose to spell her name with a ‘f’ instead of a ‘ph’ to embrace her Hispanic culture. Sofia means wisdom and this little girl is already teaching us so much 🙂

    Reply

  2. I chose Sofia because it means wisdom. I love that it’s a name that reflects the scriptures as wisdom is foundational part of the Bible. Found throughout all of proverbs is the personification of wisdom as Lady Wisdom.

    Reply

  3. Family name, Nordic spelling to honor my grandma, love the meaning

    Reply

  4. They call the capital of Bulgaria Sofia because it comes from the Saint Sofia church, as opposed to the prevailing Slavic origin of Bulgarian cities and towns.

    Reply

  5. It usually originated in Greece after the time of Plato, but it is also the capital of Bulgaria!

    Reply

  6. Sofia runs in the family and I’ve always loved it. The name Sofia makes me think of a strong, beautiful dark woman who is wise and dignified.

    Reply

  7. Sofia means beautiful, princess and she is my beautiful princess

    Reply

  8. sofia is literally the best name ever. sofia is literally da goat. sofia on top. if your name is sophia literally shut up that’s ugly. sofia is the most beautiful, powerful name ever. imagine not being named sofia.

    Reply

  9. We chose the name Sof?a Divina because it means divine wisdom. We wanted our daughter to be led by the wisdom that can only come from God because we know that only God can lead, guard and guide her in life.

    Reply

  10. My husband was really set on the name and although I really liked it I wasn’t set on it. But once she was born and I saw her precious little face the name just felt perfect for her!

    Reply

  11. It has an Ancient Greek meaning, wisdom

    Reply

  12. We choose Sofia because it’s a beautiful name it means Wisdom it goes great with her last name and nobody in family was named liked that so she’s the first

    Reply

    • Omg th so much you just made my day!:)

      Reply

  13. My husband and I chose Sofia’s name because it means wisdom in Greek. Her middle name Raye is her aunties middle name and also Sofia is our little Raye of sunshine ? Sofia’s sister Madison, her daddy always wanted the name Madison for a name. Her middle name Ann, is my middle name also my grandmother’s and my cousin’s middle names. Sofia’s brothers Dean Edward and Samuel Jacob, I got the names Dean and Samuel from the TV show Supernatural and their middle names Edward and Jacob I got from the movie saga Twilight. That’s all of our four babies????

    Reply

  14. I choose the name of sofia because my husband like it alot so i deside to put her like the.. Well she has to names ‘ the second name is Anais ?.. I love it ?

    Reply

  15. Very happy

    Reply

  16. Sofia is her fathers, grandma name. I actually always like the name, Sofie. Which I will still call her as a nickname and Sofa. Lol

    Reply

  17. I just love the name Sofia it’s sweet and beautiful and also means wisdom.
    It just seemed like such a joyful name to me and all my kids like it as well.

    Reply

  18. I took each letter out of everybody’s name and last name to come up with Sofia

    Reply

  19. I have always thought Sofia was such a pretty name. Its a good strong name from Greek meaning Wisdom. It is also important to me that it can be easily pronounced in most languages.

    Reply

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