Gender Feminine
Usage English, Spanish, Romanian, Ancient Greek (Latinized)
Scripts Ῥωξάνη(Ancient Greek)
Pronounced Pron. /ɹɑk.ˈsæn.ə/(American English) /ɹɒk.ˈsæn.ə/(British English) /rok.ˈsa.na/(Spanish) [key·simplify]
Meaning & History
Latin form of Ῥωξάνη (Rhoxane), the Greek form of an Old Persian or Bactrian name, from Old Iranian *rauxšnā meaning "bright, shining" [1]. This was the name of Alexander the Great's first wife, a daughter of the Bactrian nobleman Oxyartes. In the modern era it came into use during the 17th century. In the English-speaking world it was popularized by Daniel Defoe, who used it in his novel Roxana (1724).
Related Names
Rootrauxshna
VariantsRoxane, Roxanna, Roxanne, Rexana, Rexanne(English) Rosana(Spanish) Ruxandra(Romanian) Rhoxane(Ancient Greek)
Other Languages & CulturesRoxane, Roxanne(French) Roshni(Hindi) Rossana(Italian) Roshni(Marathi) Rauxshna(Old Persian) Roshan, Roshanak(Persian) Roksana(Polish) Rosana(Portuguese) Roksana(Russian) Ruşen(Turkish) Rukhsana(Urdu)
User SubmissionRoxána
Popularity
People think this name is
Name Days
Hungary: September 14 (as Roxána)
Images
Detail from Alexander the Great and Roxana by Pietro Rotari (1756)