Songstress Idina Menzel

Hello Jennifer!

First I want to say I absolutely love your site and really enjoy reading up on your blog and all the name advice you give. Thanks so much for all your effort and commitment!

My question is about the name Idina. Having recently fallen in love with Idina Menzel’s voice, I was curious to find out what her name meant as I had never heard it before, but it’s not listed on your site. Any idea where it came form and what it means?

Thanks!
~Rachel

Dear Rachel,

In Idina Menzel’s bio on IMDB it says she was named after her great-grandmother, Ida. The name Ida means “Hardworking.” Idina is also a variation of the English name Edina–which is a form of Edwina, the feminine form of Edwin. The Edina/Idina variation means “Rich or Prosperous Friend.”

Thank you for the kudos! It’s nice to hear our work is appreciated.

Sincerely,
Jennifer

Jennifer Moss (she/her) is the founder of BabyNames.com, author of The Baby Names Workbook, and Producer of The Baby Names Podcast. Jennifer is widely regarded as the leading expert on popular baby name trends and the naming process, serving as the authoritative source on the subject for national and international media.

Jennifer entered the tech arena in the 80s as a software developer and database architect, and became a pioneer in the Internet industry. In addition to operating BabyNames.com, Jennifer owns a web development agency in central California.