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Nena as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Nena

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The baby name Nena is a Girl name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced NEH-nah.

Nena is Italian, Spanish in Origin.

Gender: Girl
Syllables: 2
Origin: Italian, Spanish
Pronunciation: NEH-nah

What is the meaning of the name Nena ?

The baby name Nena is a girl name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced NEH-nah.

Nena is Italian, Spanish in Origin.

Nena is a feminine name taken chiefly from Spanish nena, an affectionate nursery word for a small girl. The earliest relevant form is the common noun nena, paired with masculine neno in Spain and Latin America; final -a marks feminine gender, while the nasal, reduplicative sound belongs to child-directed vocabulary rather than a transparent classical root. In Italian, Nena can serve as a hypocoristic of Antonina, Giannina, and similar -nina names.

As a given name, Nena appears in U.S. birth records from 1880 but has remained uncommon, outside the national Top 1000. Hispanic usage keeps it close to everyday endearment, while Italian and some South Slavic contexts use it more as a familiar diminutive. Public associations include Nena, the stage name of German singer Gabriele Susanne Kerner, and Nena Daconte in Gabriel García Márquez’s The Trail of Your Blood in the Snow.

Nena has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Nena

Nena Actor|musician · Born 1960 · Germany Nena is a German musician best known for her hit song '99 Luftballons', which became an international success in the 1980s. She has continued to influence the music scene with her distinctive voice and energetic performances.

Nena – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
SV Girls 0 #18 1 458
BN 0 #32 1 2,297
HN Girls 0 #37 2 884
CM 0 #56 1 2,592
RS Girls 0 #63 84 1,651
LU 0 #66 1 2,830
IN 0 #71 1 2,963
SI 0 #72 9 1,612
RS 0 #77 8 923
AF Girls 0 #91 4 2,402
JM 0 #93 1 3,714
EC 0 #100 16 2,502
SD 0 #100 3 2,130
ID Girls 0 #101 2 3,319
QA 0 #105 2 7,011
PH 0 #107 4 5,607
BN Girls 0 #108 7 5,459
HR Girls 0 #114 324 3,687
CY Girls 0 #119 7 3,755
OM 0 #120 2 6,215
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
GR 0 #125 10 3,911
IQ 0 #130 4 3,533
PA 0 #133 6 3,797
MU 0 #136 2 3,613
BN Boys 0 #139 1 6,332
SI Girls 0 #144 31 2,769
MT Girls 0 #148 6 3,773
BW Girls 0 #150 2 4,216
PR Girls 0 #150 12 3,171
EC Girls 0 #153 90 3,650
HR 0 #153 27 2,081
RS Boys 0 #154 1 2,277
CR 0 #162 4 5,526
GR Girls 0 #167 77 6,293
GT Girls 0 #170 509 7,500
LU Girls 0 #175 11 4,850
PR Boys 0 #178 1 2,508
Belgium Girls 2017 #184 23 415
AE 0 #184 4 10,220
MX Girls 0 #185 5,331 17,781
CZ 0 #186 1 3,154
Sweden Girls 2018 #187 2 1,665
AR 0 #192 2 2,915
AL Girls 0 #197 26 4,141
DK 0 #206 1 5,198
AO Girls 0 #217 1 4,575
GT 0 #224 91 5,948
HU Girls 0 #225 1 3,308
BG Girls 0 #229 3 3,559
IR 0 #231 1 4,221
NA Girls 0 #232 6 7,146
MO Boys 0 #234 1 5,842
PA Girls 0 #238 288 9,861
BD 0 #240 2 5,992
MO Girls 0 #241 11 7,056
SD Girls 0 #241 106 7,678
PT 0 #245 6 4,161
JP Girls 0 #248 4 6,592
AO Boys 0 #249 1 5,568
NA Boys 0 #251 3 6,830
CR Girls 0 #254 348 11,342
HR Boys 0 #255 5 3,997
TW Girls 0 #265 12 8,139
NG 0 #271 2 5,926
JM Girls 0 #275 4 7,507
PH Girls 0 #277 115 13,098
SG 0 #281 2 11,010
IL 0 #282 1 6,291
QA Girls 0 #283 34 15,378
Canada Girls 2021 #286 5 2,910
MX 0 #289 128 8,339
JO Girls 0 #293 33 7,570
CO Girls 0 #295 2,305 16,140
PE 0 #297 14 6,350
AL Boys 0 #303 1 5,122
SA 0 #309 4 10,560
Austria Girls 0 #326 95 1,885
BR 0 #326 20 5,969
DK Girls 0 #327 3 7,429
KZ Girls 0 #332 1 5,862
GH Girls 0 #336 2 6,973
MU Girls 0 #342 10 8,539
BO 0 #344 38 6,868
IQ Girls 0 #345 167 11,303
CZ Girls 0 #346 6 5,378
MY 0 #350 5 12,352
BO Girls 0 #353 306 9,488
CN Girls 0 #353 7 8,829
HK 0 #356 2 8,483
PL Girls 0 #358 7 5,096
GH Boys 0 #360 2 8,138
YE 0 #362 20 8,639
BR Girls 0 #364 1,044 12,708
NL 0 #369 23 2,481
LY 0 #370 169 12,703
OM Girls 0 #374 23 15,987
JO Boys 0 #389 1 7,057
EG 0 #391 10 6,387
CL 0 #392 20 6,867
CL Girls 0 #397 620 14,098
BD Girls 0 #403 4 8,413
CO 0 #404 77 7,768
PH Boys 0 #406 3 11,440
KW Girls 0 #407 109 19,177
PT Girls 0 #407 45 7,952
Spain Girls 0 #409 866 5,561
France Girls 2015 #410 4 3,223
UY Boys 0 #413 1 5,922
Spain 0 #418 35 2,326
Germany 0 #420 18 2,542
PE Girls 0 #441 753 14,861
GT Boys 0 #455 20 7,625
SD Boys 0 #461 6 10,523
ZA 0 #472 3 14,421
UY Girls 0 #473 38 6,731
CR Boys 0 #476 12 10,188
AE Girls 0 #478 76 20,968
AR Boys 0 #480 4 7,628
PS Girls 0 #480 44 10,981
AR Girls 0 #486 114 8,289
PA Boys 0 #497 9 9,305
RU Girls 0 #515 9 11,913
IR Girls 0 #521 10 8,334
RU Boys 0 #526 1 12,621
BH 0 #527 27 17,937
CM Girls 0 #529 12 11,671
SA Girls 0 #536 428 25,931
SG Girls 0 #543 44 18,916
PS Boys 0 #560 2 10,655
HK Girls 0 #564 52 16,104
IR Boys 0 #565 1 10,162
IN Girls 0 #567 65 13,121
SY 0 #568 164 11,684
IL Girls 0 #581 37 11,648
BO Boys 0 #582 11 9,244
EG Girls 0 #622 367 14,742
IL Boys 0 #625 1 10,983
LB 0 #625 34 13,263
IQ Boys 0 #648 20 13,071
CL Boys 0 #651 15 13,390
Germany Girls 0 #661 181 4,949
IT 0 #682 33 4,183
NL Girls 0 #687 275 5,933
BR Boys 0 #690 62 12,213
Finland Girls 2026 #725 14 3,895
SG Boys 0 #738 2 17,960
NG Girls 0 #742 45 15,093
QA Boys 0 #742 2 18,093
KW Boys 0 #802 5 18,755
TN 0 #860 6 13,765
PE Boys 0 #864 15 14,506
EG Boys 0 #869 18 15,035
CO Boys 0 #870 51 15,656
MX Boys 0 #895 88 16,355
United States Girls 2024 #907 10 8,487
OM Boys 0 #915 4 17,948
Spain Boys 0 #916 15 5,610
MY Girls 0 #921 74 24,821
IT Girls 0 #940 553 9,415
IN Boys 0 #983 19 16,750
NG Boys 0 #1,000 2 16,906
MA 0 #1,027 102 20,986
DZ 0 #1,075 102 20,130
ZA Girls 0 #1,125 17 25,928
AE Boys 0 #1,138 6 22,615
MY Boys 0 #1,177 6 25,439
TR 0 #1,196 16 19,440
ZA Boys 0 #1,271 2 25,619
IT Boys 0 #1,460 12 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,581 34 28,008

Nena is popular in 85 countries — most recent births per country:

Flanders, Belgium
United States
France
Belgium
Canada

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People also ask about Nena

Nena is a unisex name, given to both boys and girls.
Nena is a 2 syllable name, pronounced NEH-nah.
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Nina, Nenita and Nenna.
Yes — Nena ranked #184 in Belgium in 2017, and appears in official birth registries across 6 countries.
Nena ranks highest in Belgium (#184 in 2017).
Yes — 1 notable people named Nena are in our database, including Nena (Actor|musician).