China

Where China comes from

From Portuguese China, from possibly Venetan Cina probably under influence from Old French Chin, from Classical Persian چین (čīn) under influence from Medieval Latin Sīna (“China”), from Middle Persian 𐭰𐭩𐭭 (Čīn, “China”), from Sanskrit चीन (cīna, “the Chinese; China”) of uncertain etymology. It is usually thought to be derived from Chinese 秦 (Qín) (sm Qín, mc d͡zin, oc *dziŋ, "Qin"), the westernmost ancient Chinese state, but other theories have been proposed, including derivation from 晉 /晋 (jìn) (sm Jìn, mc t͡sinh, oc *tsiŋh, "Jin"), another important ancient state; 荊 /荆 (jīng) (sm Jīng, mc kɹaŋ, oc *kreŋ, "Chu"), the southernmost ancient Chinese state; or Zina, the endonym of the people of the Yelang kingdom. See "Names of China" and "Chinas" at Wikipedia. As a female name, usually derived via china (“porcelain”) and china doll, ultimately from the same source.
— Wiktionary's entry for China
  • 2 syllables
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1885
    First appearance
    #1,047 among girls, 5 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  2. 1972
    China Miéville born
    English writer, critic, and activist
  3. 1992
    Peak, #816
    245 babies named China — more than any year before or since.
  4. 1998
    China Anne McClain born
    American actress and singer
  5. 2001
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #1,887.
In the dictionary
  • A female given name.
Namesakes
  • China Anne McClain · American actress and singer, born 1998
  • China Miéville · English writer, critic, and activist, born 1972
  • China Zorrilla · Uruguayan actress, 1922–2014
  • China Forbes · American singer, songwriter, born 1970
  • China Moses · American singer and TV host, born 1978

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.