Zoya came to Russian from the language of the ancient Greeks. In Greek, the meaning of the name Zoya is “life”. There is another version that the name Zoya came from the name Eve and was transformed when transferred from one language to another.
Zoya is also a name found in Bulgaria. Zoya's name day is January 26, the same day as for the names Zhivko and Zhivka, which also mean "life." [noted -ed]