Monica

Where the name comes from

• Origin uncertain (late Latin record; possibly North African)
  Origin uncertain. No meaning has been established.
  Latin Monica (also spelled Monnica), the name of Saint Monica, mother of Saint Augustine
  The name first appears as the name of Saint Monica, who was born in North Africa about 1,690 years ago. In 1884 Charlotte Yonge wrote that her name had never been explained. Patrick Woulfe called it a name of unknown origin. The Dictionary of American Family Names says she was a Carthaginian, so the name may be Phoenician (Punic). This is a possibility, not a proven origin.
• Latin (popular meaning)
  Popular meaning: "advisor" or "one who advises"
  Latin monere, "to warn, to advise"
  This is a medieval reinterpretation, not the original source of the name. In the early Middle Ages, people took the name to come from Latin monere. They linked it to the spiritual guidance Monica gave her son. Another popular link, to Greek monos ("alone, single"), is also later folk etymology.

Monica across traditions

• Christian (Catholic and Orthodox). Saint Monica is remembered as the mother whose years of prayer helped bring her son Augustine to Christian faith. She is honored as a model of patient, prayerful motherhood. She died at Ostia, Italy, about 1,640 years ago.
• Spanish and Latin American. In Spanish the name is Mónica, with a written accent. Spanish and Italian families also carry it as a surname, Mónica. There is a masculine form, Mónico, used in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese. Writing in 1884, Charlotte Yonge suggested that the old Spanish name Mencía might also come from Monica. She offered this only as a possibility.
• California and the American West. The city of Santa Monica, California, takes its name from a local spring called Las Lágrimas de Santa Mónica, "The Tears of Saint Monica." The name recalls the tears the saint shed for her son. The city was laid out in 1875.
• Irish. The Irish form is Moncha, which stands for Monica.
• United States popularity. Peak decade: the 1970s, when Monica ranked #45 among US girls' names (SSA).

Who carried it

• Saint Monica of Thagaste (Lived about 1,690 to 1,640 years ago): Christian saint born in Thagaste, Numidia (now Souk Ahras, Algeria). She was the mother of Augustine of Hippo. She is the earliest known bearer of the name.
• Monica Seles (Born 1973): Tennis champion and winner of multiple Grand Slam singles titles.

Forms in other languages

Mónica, Mônica, Mònica, Monika, Monique, Moncha, Monnica, Mónico (masculine)

Monica in letter-number systems

Hebrew, Greek and other traditions gave every letter a number, and read meaning into the totals. These are the counts, computed; the readings are inside the Innerverse.