Sienna

see-E-nuh

The name Sienna takes its form and color from the Italian city of Siena in Tuscany.

US Rank

No. 139

Births

2,113

Peak Year

2022

The city’s name is of contested origin: some scholars trace it to the Etruscan family name Saina, others to the Senones, a Gallic tribe who settled the area, and still others to the Latin senex meaning “old.” The double-n English spelling Sienna is

anglicized from the pigment terra di Siena, the reddish-brown earth historically mined near the city and used by Renaissance painters.

What the name Sienna means

Siena itself is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Italy, founded by the Etruscans and developed under Roman rule.

Its medieval golden age saw the founding of the University of Siena in 1240 and the construction of the Gothic cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta.

The city was the birthplace of Saint Catherine of Siena (1347-1380), Doctor of the Church and patron saint of Italy and Europe, whose mystical writings influenced Christian thought for centuries.

The pigment raw sienna was used by Caravaggio, Rembrandt, and the Sienese School including Duccio di Buoninsegna. The English use of sienna as a color name is documented from the late 18th century.

The transition from color word and place name to personal name is a recent development. British actress Sienna Miller, born 1981, became one of the first prominent bearers and a strong driver of the name’s spread in the early 2000s.

In the United States, Sienna entered the SSA top 1000 in 1995 and has risen steadily, reaching the top 150 by the early 2020s.

It is also a top 50 name in the United Kingdom and Australia. The double-n spelling, while inauthentic to the Italian city, has firmly established itself as the dominant English form.

The name appeals to parents drawn to warm earth tones and Italian Renaissance heritage without the more common Florence or Roma.