Hi Jennifer,

Well, I like the name Tavia, but I don’t want to name one of my kids after someone I know who’s name is Tavia. So I added a suffix, “anna”. I looked on your site, and “Tavia” was listed as an abbreviation of “Octavia”, meaning eight, and “anna” was listed as “gracious, merciful”. So the name I made up, Tavianna, would mean “gracious, merciful eighth”??? Any thoughts on any other meanings this name could have?

Sincerely,
NJ

Hi NJ,

I love the name Tavianna, great job!  It is easy to pronounce and easy to spell. Yes, I would combine the meanings, but I would say “The Eighth / Gracious, Merciful.”  I will add it to our site.

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.