Ima as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Ima

What is the meaning of the name Ima ?

The baby name Ima is a Female name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced EE-ma (English, IPA: /ˈiːmə/); i-MAH (Hebrew, IPA: /iˈma/).

Ima is Hebrew in Origin.

Ima is a cross-cultural feminine given name with several roots. In the Ibibio/Efik languages of southern Nigeria, ima means love, and Ima is used on its own or as a short form of theophoric names such as Imaobong (love of the Lord) and Imabasi (love of God). In a Germanic strand, Ima/Imma appears as a medieval diminutive related to Irmin-names (Irmgard, Irmina), carrying the sense of whole or universal. In Modern Hebrew, ima (אמא) is the everyday word for mother, sometimes adopted symbolically though not traditional as a given name. It can also serve as a contemporary nickname for names ending in -ima, such as Fatima or Karima.

Used in the United States since the late 19th century, the name is rare today but remembered through Texas philanthropist Ima Hogg (1882–1975). Predominantly feminine, it is pronounced EE-ma. Variants and relatives include Imma, Imah, Irma, and Emma.